as i grow, i learn

Aren't there things that you had heard but never really got until you had grown old/er? I am constantly amazed by how non-concrete we are even as 30 something adults. I feel as if I am still unfolding and unfurling into the person that I am meant to be.

There are things that I wish someone had told me. Plain, silly things that would have made life slightly simpler; such as, don't drink a glass of cold water after brushing your teeth with minty toothpaste. It feels as if you're huffing liquid nitrogen. And big things, undercurrents that no one really talks about in everyday conversation; such as for some reason if you're kind and genuine, often you're perceived as a mental midget. Realizations that would have nudged me slightly forward in the learning that we call 'life'.

I am glad that I have retained some amount of curiousity and wonder as I've grown older. I am still thrilled when I see earthworms mating, learn some new inane piece of trivia or hear a birdcall. But I feel that maybe I could be a 'genius' if I could have retained all this info. I am constantly in wonder of the world around me, staring up at the sky with my mouth hanging open. I am so entranced that I forget so much of what I have 'known' at times.

My children may never read this blog. They may lack an interest or maybe one day, it will be lost in cyberspace. But there are things that I am sure that I will wish I would have told them. Or things that as adults they may want to know. A leg up as it were.

So I've decided that now and then, I may have to write or type these little tidbits of information down for them as a record of things that I hope I have remembered to tell them..."Remember to shake someone's hand firmly, but not break it. If you shake it too lightly, you seem like a sissy push-over. If you shake it too hard, you seem like an overbearing power freak."
"Change your dish cloth daily. I'm not totally sure why. It has something to do with dampness, bacteria and grossness....It just a good idea. Just in case."
"When people watching, if you get busted staring, smile sweetly. Don't look away quickly. You are curious, not judging."

So, if I can think of things, I'll post them on here. Maybe I'll promote my image as a simpleton, or maybe I'll have some nodding their heads in agreement. But, it'll be here if my kids need it....