I consider myself one of the least disciplined people I know. It’s true. Even my seven-year-old grandson is disciplined enough to grab as much screen time as possible playing video games. Those games have remarkably and surprisingly made him an excellent reader and adept with his computer and iPad. I’d rather he pick up a book but what do I know? His other grandmother, Meme, who lives out of state, plays games with him online where they create towns and race cars and god knows what else. I can’t do that because the motion of video games makes me nauseous.
He recently, proclaimed to his father that I am Gramma #2. My son was quick to point out that I was not #2 but rather, the child is fortunate to have two #1 Grammas, thereby creating a sense of balance in the Gramma hierarchy. He’s also been known to “fire” me when things don’t go his way. We have a unique relationship the little one and I, which I’m hoping will develop as he gets older. We are getting to know each other as I navigate “retired life” and he learns to manage his age 7 going on 15 personality.
His mother came over to my house one day to help me with some taller/younger person tasks, one of which was to even out my curtain rods. My sense of balance is not as fine-tuned as it used to be so I don’t really belong on a ladder, reaching toward the ceiling to fix such things. But she is agile and competent, not to mention willing. I compensate her with my turkey chili which she loves.
Back to my curtains, it would seem like unbalanced curtain rods would be inconsequential in the scheme of things. But not true. Every time I looked out the large windows in my living room and bedroom, I would cringe as I witnessed the rods going one way or another rather than being centered over the windows. It made me unsettled, to say the least. I wondered why, or where that came from.
Then I remembered, that on one or several visits to my Mom’s apartment, she asked me to straighten the blinds and push the curtains to be even on each side. I tweaked and tweaked until they were just to her liking. She would have been out of her seat uncomfortable if she had seen my unbalanced curtain rods. All whacked out by several inches. Okay, so I know where that came from. But still, the situation needed correction.
My helper got on the tall step stool and I choreographed the dance, back and forth until the rods were just right. She was so patient. Then, to ensure they didn’t move again, a little piece of tape went into the center support to keep them in place. When she was done we had a nice little visit, I gave her my chili and she went on her way.
I sat down on my throne in the living room and looked up admiring “our” work, nodding my head at its perfection and noticing how good I felt now that those rods were now balanced. They somehow represented more than the things that held Ikea curtains. In some way, my soul was soothed and I knew, amidst all sorts of chaos, all would be right with my world.
Blessings and Peace,
Patty