Puntoon #2

Relish the Laughter

Did you ever think of something really funny, that other people didn't think was that funny? You know you have. You are laughing at some dumb joke and your friends, or co-workers, or strangers in line next to you, think you have gone daft. I am pretty sure this is one of those times. A silly joke I made up in my own twisted brain, sent me into a fit of hilarity that I could not contain. When I tried to share it at work, some people laughed at the joke but most of them just laughed at me laughing. I thought the joke was so funny that I drew it into a cartoon. Maybe you will laugh at the joke and maybe you will laugh at the fact that I am still laughing. Either way, if you smile, giggle, or flat out crack up,  for a sec, you get happy, and we all win. Cuz in this insane world, I am thankful I can manage a good laugh now and then. Peace! LW 

lw

When the Clock Strikes Quiet

I could hear the chimes of my friend's grandfather clock reminding  us that our conversation had lasted another 15 minutes. The clock's numbers, hands, and chimes shout out to the world that time is passing, that the time is now, or, perhaps, that it's too late or too early.  Behind the face, the gears and cogs quietly hum along unseen, barely heard, if at all, precise, and utterly necessary.  The hands and numbers offer only misinformation without the clicking cogs. The clicking gears have no purpose without the hands. They all work together to give the world vital information.

I recently viewed a TED talk by author Susan Cain on the power of introverts. She recounts the difficulties of being a cog in a world of clock faces, an introvert in a world where out-going is valued and those who are quiet and reflective are considered "a little odd." The extroverts all see each other shouting what time it is and think it's normal to be that way (and for them it is.) The introverts stand by wondering if the constant chatter is meaningful or even necessary.

Over my lifetime I have been called quiet, moody, anti-social, weird, an egghead, a nerd, and too sensitive.  I have been  all those things and, at times, I AM those things.  I was a such a disagreeable teenager that my parents built me a room between the garage and the laundry room so I could have more space to myself and less interaction with my family. In an age where kids did not have TVs in their rooms, I was perfectly satisfied with a radio, books, and my odd little projects. What I was, was a sensitive and reflective kid with a limit to how much social stimulation I could handle without blowing a fuse. While their motivation was more about keeping peace than acknowledging my differences,  I am thankful that my parents gave me space instead of forcing me to be more out-going than I wanted to be. As an adult, I still need my space and enjoy a certain amount of time alone with my thoughts.

What would our world be like without clicking cogs and gears like Isaac Newton, Abraham Lincoln, Albert Einstein, Rosa Parks, Eleanor Roosevelt, Steve Wozniak,   or J.K. Rowling?  All introverts.  All history makers. Would there be world changing science? Would there be freedom? Would there be Harry Potter?  

The great leader, Mahatma Gandhi once said,  "I have naturally formed the habit of restraining my thoughts.  A thoughtless word hardly ever escaped my tongue or pen. Experience has taught me that silence is part of the spiritual discipline of votary truth. We find so many people impatient to talk. All the talking can hardly be said to be of any benefit to the world. It is so much waste of time. My shyness has been in reality my shield and buckler. It has allowed me to grow. It has helped me in my discernment of truth."

While I can say with great certainty that my mouth is not near so restrained as Gandhi, I certainly do experience the world as lots of talk with not much thought. I often think that there is so much noise going on that I could hardly decipher the deeper meaning provided there actually was one.

In spite of this introvert perspective, I have learned to work with a team, to be a quiet negotiator when necessary, to stand up when it really matters, and to let it go when it doesn't.  I have mastered the art of lurking on the edges without being creepy (unless I want to be) and  listening for the clues I need to "fake it" through certain social situations. I call upon my strange and often dark sense of humor to diffuse the noise, and when I can't get away from the racket, I create my own bearable version by cranking the tunes I love and singing along (and not well either.)  I also know when I must retreat to solitude to recharge my being........ and I will pay a price if I ignore this need for too long. 

How do the extroverts consider the quiet cogs and thinking gears in their lives? How do introverts engage a very noisy world in a meaningful way that doesn't kill their quiet soul? I suppose the answers lie in understanding our differences and in acknowledging that the clock doesn't work without the hands or the cogs. We are all connected and, yet, so very NOT the same. 

Make a quiet space for the introverts in your life, so we can create what moves us. Make space for the extroverts so they can jump and shout and do. The  clock will work, and we will all know what time it is.

To see the TED talk by Susan Cain click the link

Watch the Road.........

On New Year’s Day I met some friends for a walk through the holiday lights at the Oregon Garden in Silverton. We walked our dogs along the lighted path among the Christmas displays, stopping next to fire pits to warm up. We took silly photos, shared our dogs with every passing child, and enjoyed each other’s company. I considered it a great start for a new year.

Toward the end of our visit the snow began to fall. The flakes were small and sticky.  We decided to cut our visit short, and began the trek to the parking lot. By the time we reached our vehicles the snow was accumulating quickly.

As I hit the main road from Silverton to Woodburn via Mt. Angel, the visibility became worse. The light reflected off the snowflakes made it almost impossible to see. My CRV handles well in snow and the road was not very slick. However, I felt like I was on a Star Wars ride with the galaxy coming toward me at light speed.

I began to see more cars stopped on the side of the road, and I wondered if I was going to be able to drive out of the storm. I was tense, and I could feel myself about to hyperventilate. I recalled my father’s driving lessons. “Watch the road, not the weather.” he would say, “Slow and steady.” Once I took my eyes off the snow and concentrated on tracking the little reflectors that separated lanes, I could tell where I was.  After 4 miles of tracking those little amber reflectors at 20 mph the snow let up and turned to rain. The remainder of the drive was uneventful and way more relaxed.

Why is it so hard to take your eyes off the snow and concentrate on the road? I get so hypnotized by all the flying snow that I forget to look down and find the path again. Watching the snow instead of the road will land you in the ditch.

Laced among my dread of the usual holiday hoop-lah was a broken furnace, uncommonly cold weather, two sick pets, a stack of bills, a plantar fasciitis flare up, and a paycheck rendered meager by a city-halting snowstorm.  To top it off, it occurred to me that my pants were indeed too tight.

People showed up, like the reflectors, reminding me to lower my life gaze a bit and watch the road instead of the storm. They loaned me heaters, gave me electric blankets, offered me places to stay, messaged me often to make sure I had not gone hypothermic, and contributed to a heater fund that I didn’t know I had. The storm rages around me, and I plug along slow and steady

The furnace is repaired (for now), the pets are recovering, and I joined a fitness group at the gym to deal with the pants problem. My foot hurts and I am pretty broke. And the best part………. is that I am not alone.

Happy New Year to the reflectors in my life who keep me on the road in spite of the storm.

Peace! lw

Fun & Friends at the Oregon Garden

Restoration-Part 1

Joe and Ben

My friend, Ben, has a WW II Jeep restored to look and function just like it was when it was originally built.  Joe (as he calls it) has had a lot of work done.  When it was new, the Jeep was a work horse meant to withstand conditions of war.  It wasn’t built to be flashy, and my friend has been true to Joe’s heritage, adding nothing that doesn’t belong.  As a result, Joe catches the eye of every car enthusiast, mechanic, and war veteran who comes near it. They marvel at its authenticity and at the skill and patience required to restore such a vehicle. He shows the Jeep at car shows and military vehicle gatherings, and onlookers pose next to it to take photos . He drives it on the highway. He gives his grandkids driving lessons with it. While this Jeep carries on with its life, it’s always a project in need of something to make it more authentic and/or to keep it running.

I like to think that we come into the world pretty darn perfect. As we grow, life carries on around us, and through us, and in spite of us. Like that Jeep we go to war with some tough circumstance. When the war is over, we return to the motor pool, damaged, seeking repair and restoration.  When restored, we go back to moving about in the world again, and the cycle goes on.

I’ve spent many days in the motor pool discovering that restoration for the human spirit doesn’t start from the outside. Restoration begins inside my head with the thought that I don’t have to remain damaged.  I have to take hold of it in my heart. I have to choose it knowing that true restoration comes wrapped in the forgiveness I offer myself and my offenders. It is generated when I can accept a loss and be OK with my sadness. It is kindled when I acknowledge the people in my motor pool who love me even when I’m dented and down.  It is created when I build a bridge, extend a hand, or, somehow, make a difference. I know it is real when I can bravely leave the motor pool with a grateful heart, all while knowing,  I could be back again tomorrow to hammer out another dent or two. 

Peace! lw

Silver Linings

Do these clouds have the silver lining? 

“You have to do everything you can, you have to work your hardest, and if you do, if you stay positive, you have a shot at a silver lining.”

-Pat Jr., to Dr. Cliff Patel, from the film Silver Linings Playbook based on the novel by Matthew Quick. 

I know that going to physical therapy is good for me; however, I arrived at my appointment with my usual lack of enthusiasm. It’s not convenient to leave work mid-day and miss my time to relax and eat lunch, only to get stuck in traffic trying to get back to work.  I was anxious to get in and get out. I can do whatever they ask me to do, and I can do it fast.

Since the injury was work related, the PT must document all the moves I can or can’t do for my job. As we were going through those moves, Pat (not her real name) said to me that the injury wasn’t such a bad thing to happen to me. I replied that I would much rather have not been injured in the first place. I did, however, admit that it’s been an opportunity to learn about how things work and how to take better care of myself.

She reminded me that the work we have done has been developmental and good for me. My legs are stronger and amazingly more flexible than they were before my injury. Learning to walk normally again has not exactly been a cake-walk, and Pat told me I could do it anyway. (Keep your foot straight, heel down first.)  She’s helped me pick better shoes. She motivated me to go to the gym so I would have access to the equipment I need to do the work on my own. She taught me how to tape my knee to lessen the stress on the joints so I can continue to be active without too much pain. She taught me how to slowly build myself back up. Rehab is a very patient process, and I get no brownie points for patience.

My knee is finally healing to the point where I don’t notice every move I make. I am seeing the light at the end of the rehab tunnel and I now believe that it’s possible for me to do everything that I could do pre busted knee cap. I see the possibility of continuing to build the strength in my legs over the winter so that I don’t have to start from square one when I get back on my bike in the spring, and doing so slowly with the patients and planning of Pat.  

Pat is a silver lining lady. I guess when all you do all day is help injured people attempt to get their lives back, you gotta be. Maybe it saves her sanity, as well as motivates those of us who are in the rehab process.  Every step forward I make is part of that silver lining. 

I am not by nature a silver lining person. Perhaps, if I strive with the patience and planning of Pat, I can overcome dreadful realism and become one.  One can hope. 

Peace! lw

Win or ..........

Last weekend I raced the boys with a small club from Seattle. I turned down other club’s offers to play. The boys probably would have scored higher point totals had I played with those other teams.  Regardless, I chose well.  

This little group needed us to have enough players to enter.  They needed the dog’s speed to score points. They needed my experience to help brainstorm some running orders.

As a result, we placed well both days, in spite of an incorrect seeding into a faster division where we were sure we’d be creamed into oblivion.  As a bonus, we helped a dog reach his 5000^th point. If you know about flyball, you may think this is nothing, but for Doogie and his little team, it was 8 years coming. Our being there made a difference, and we had a really great time.

I remind myself, that the dogs do not care how many points they score. They care about running fast, a ball, a yummy reward, and the praise and scratches I shower on them each time they run and fetch.  They care about zooming around with their “doggie friends”. If you asked them how many races they won, you would, maybe, get a head cock.

Unlike them, I count the points we score. I like to win because being the loser kinda sucks.  I challenge myself and my readers to be people who choose "make a difference" over "surefire win"  in all areas of our lives. I ponder the notion that maybe in the grander scheme of existence, "make a difference" = "win" no matter the final score.

Peace! lw
FYI - The photos were taken by David Eastman. He was paid for his downloads. 

Doogie, Nov. 16, 5K Points

Sonic, Sept 16, 20K points

Pi, Sept 16, 40K points