Finding the Pearl

My father is a Buddhist and has counseled me for years to always seek out the pearl in every difficult situation.  He believes quite strongly in finding the positive aspect of every horrible or difficult action that occurs.  It is an honorable, mature and noble philosophy.  It allows for people's inherent goodness to shine through and give a sense of peace to the person who has suffered.

As I'm sure most of my loyal readership will have guessed, I am NOT a Buddhist.  I find it next to impossible to identify something good and pure when I'm busy screaming oaths of defiance and shaking my fists at the heavens.  Usually I am occupying myself with assigning blame and plotting retribution.  I am fantastic with revenge.  Really.  Ask around.

I remember well the actions of my Irish Catholic grandmother and by her side, learned to hold a grudge for centuries.  She taught me how to identify the enemy and attack with vitriolic prose.

Makes me wonder how her son became a Buddhist.

On second thought, no I don't. Grandma is dead and I take daily medicine for acid re-flux.  I think Dad has the right idea of it.

Today marks the end of an especially long school holidays.  Yes I know it was only one extra day but I repeat....it was one EXTRA day, that counts as longer.  Longer duration of holidays with no kids club or all day spas is never a good thing.  E.v.e.r.  I am in need of something positive to jump start my brain. I have been consumed with simply just getting through the day and concentrating on not beating to death anyone who rolled his or eyes at me.

 I thought I would take a lesson from my dad (see Dad, I DO listen sometimes) and I'm going to look back over the last 2 1/2 weeks and find good things that occurred.  Moments I can be very pleased and grateful that occurred.

1.  Out of the last 10 days I slept in until at least 8am every day.  I'm shouting this one out to all those moms who are still stuck with the 5 am wake up calls.  Hang in there Ladies.  Some day you too can teach your children to turn on the TV, open a box of cereal, spill...er um I mean pour milk into a bowl and find clean underwear all by themselves.  Just make sure to install a healthy fear of opening the front door without you around and you will be set.

2.  A dear friend from Texas visited us.  I've known Cam for *cough* 18 *cough* years now and he is a great person to know.  He's also a sarcastic pain in the ass which in my circle of friends is a badge of honor. I love him dearly and have missed him.  Anyone who doesn't appreciate his humor, friendship or his importance in the Tencza family doesn't deserve to sit at the family table.  Upon his departure both my girls sobbed and moaned, "I don't want him to leave.  He was the best fake uncle ever!"  High praise indeed.  Time for the other two fake uncles to make another appearance and reclaim their thrones.

3.  The human being is a fragile beast and it's limitations shouldn't be ignored.  I think it's a good thing that I not cognizant of the number of fights I can handle and control.  On any regular day I can handle 26 screaming altercations before I snap like a green stick and ban short people to their rooms.  Of course that's on a good day when I've had sleep, at least 3 cups of tea and the living room doesn't look like a New Orleans bar room floor the day after Mardi Gras.  Since, like Mardi Gras,  this only occurs once a year I have discovered that I have a limit of 12 screaming banshee attacks before I go postal and send kids flying.

So remember that number.  12  If you overhear me muttering something that sounds like, "That's 10"  start stepping back. I have a fairly long reach for a woman of only 5'7.  Now technically I do have 2 more to go but let's be honest with each other.  When the Wrath of Cecelia is about to be let loose do you really want to rely on my math skills?  I think not.

4.  Connor is not ready to see action movies in the movie theater.   Despite her multiple viewings of Thor, Captain America, The Avengers, Iron Man, and Iron Man 2 at home and her bored assurances of, "Yes mother, I am F.I.N.E." it would seem that movies in the theater are an entirely different situation.  While it's not good that she became completely unhinged during Iron Man 3 yesterday, I feel that it's positive for me to know the exact level of action drama carnage she can handle.

For example, gas-passing chipmunks caterwauling  Beyonce songs sonic boom style are A-okay.  A man sitting on a chair pretending to shoot someone?  Not good.  Anything with iCarly or Victorious characters  using song and their super intelligent teen brains to dupe adults?  Just peachy.  Simply suggesting that a cat is about to be hurt or even annoyed...oh sweet Jesus, kill me now.  Pepper Pots using Girl Power (and a crap ton of enhanced flower nectar and going medieval on the bad guy again, Hunky Dory.  Loud helicopters blowing up mansions not so much.

I feel much better having these parameters established and etched in my memory.  Etched also in my flesh as my arm is covered in claw marks from her trying to climb over my head to make a break for it.

5.  Teddy has a new party trick of watching me intently as I am trying to say something important to him.  While his eyes are locked on mine he then attempts to mouth what I am saying.   It's possibly he's doing it to instill what I'm saying into his brain but more likely he's just being a miserable little bastard.

It took me a few minutes to come up with something positive in this activity.  Finally I decided to settle for it being positive that I didn't floss his brain through his ears with his ear buds.

Yes, I will take some serious pride in that one.  That quite possibly was one of the top five greatest accomplishments of my life.

I will cherish these pearls forever.  I am a much better educated parent and person after these few weeks.

My dad is right, there is always something positive in everything.  For me, I am positively glad these holidays are over.