It's been over two months since this picture was taken, but as I was organizing my files on the computer, I came across it and thought it would be fun to write about the crazy day Aaron and I spent at the airport. I am feeling a bit overwhelmed with how many pictures I still have to document (say like 600) but I'm gonna do it one at a time. And I'll start with the ugliest:
I believe this picture was taken on Aaron's cell phone... somewhere in St. Loius, but I can't promise. We spent the entire day at several different airports and ate nothing but junk food, so it's all a blur. We had just been on an incredible vacation and were going to see our dearly missed kids soon, so instead of feeling miserable and depressed about the strike our airline was having, we were very happy... and a bit hyper. I loved everything about this day.
One of the funniest things we did (besides making up obnoxious fake laughs) was watching ALL the people in the airport. There were stressed out parents, business men, cowboys in tight jeans, clueless teenagers, well-dressed elderly women... and we made up stories for all of them. I can get pretty creative, but Aaron is quicker than I am and he made me laugh uncontrollably. At one point, we spotted a gentleman in his 50's. He was tall with gray speckled hair. He was wearing slacks and a fitted polo shirt which showed off his muscular build. I pointed him out and told Aaron that he was hot for an old man. Instead of getting jealous, Aaron agreed.
About an hour later, in a completely different part of the airport, we boarded our plane. This was one of the longer layovers and we weren't sure we would get seats by each other because it was a full flight. Way in the back of the plane, we saw two seats next to each other... the only two left. And guess who was sitting in the isle next to these two open seats? Yep. The smokin' hot 50 year old we saw earlier. Aaron sat in between me and the hottie and before we could even click on our seat belts, my husband leaned over and said, "You know, I have some serious reservations about sitting next to you. My wife pointed to you about an hour ago and said you were hot." I nodded my head and smiled. The guy flashed his great big white teeth and laughed. He said we had just made his day. Nothing breaks the ice like telling someone how good-looking they are.
We spent the next couple of hours talking to this guy. He is a pilot (all hot men are, according to my mother-in-law) and he had a very interesting life. We saw pictures of his kids and drooled over the new convertible he had just purchased for his wife's birthday... {we had just turned our convertible into the car rental place and vowed that we must buy one as soon as possible.} He asked us all kinds of questions and we told him about our boys, why we homeschool, and all about the Sin City that we live in. We talked religion for a good hour as well. He was such a nice guy and we were so happy to have met him. When the plane landed, we shook his hand and told him it was a pleasure to sit by him. He paid us a great compliment and said, "It gives me so much hope in the world to meet such capable, young parents. We need good people raising the next generation." After he left we both regretted not getting his information or giving him one of Aaron's business cards.
I am writing this now because it's one of those stories that will easily be forgotten about... and I don't want to forget it. We walked off that airplane with such high spirits. I remember feeling so grateful that I married a friendly guy. Aaron is so easy to talk to and can steal my conversation thunder, if I am not careful. I love that about him.
I also remember coming off the plane and looking at everyone else differently. We come in contact with so many strangers every single day. They all have names, families, personalities and stories that can teach us so much about life. All we have to do is take the time to listen to them. I don't know why we are such a closed society. Why is it so difficult to make friends with the grocery store checker or the mail man? One lesson I learned from my favorite book,
A New Earth, the author Ekhart Tolle states that it's because we label everyone around us. Not labels like ugly, popular, rich, poor, immature (although I believe we do this too) but labels like "mailman", "doctor" and "crazy driver who just cut me off". A mailman might deliver the mail, but it is not who he is. Just because a grocery store clerk is ringing up your food doesn't mean we can't talk to him. Why do we look away and slide our credit cards without even recognizing that they are just like us? Because we also have labels for ourselves.. and we play the role of "customer" exactly like society has taught us.
I consider myself a friendly person, but I often (daily) fall into these same kind of labels. It's sad because we have awesome next-door neighbors. They are Hawaiian and our kids play well together. Ask me how many conversations I've had with the parents: zero. I need to be better and realize that I can learn so much from them while our doors are thirty inches apart from each other. When we move away, I know I will regret not asking about the delicious-smelling marinade they put on their chicken when they barbecue... among other things.
I want to teach my kids, by example, that the masses of people we see out in public everyday are not masses-- they are individuals. Sometimes, I am in an extra friendly mood and will talk to strangers for long periods of time, but it's only when I feel like it. Earlier this summer, Cindy and I were in the drive-thru of Jack in the Box and had an interesting conversation with the guy at the window. He was 7 feet tall and had to arch down really far to collect my money. I wanted to know exactly how tall he was, how tall his wife was and (if he had kids) how tall they were. There wasn't a car behind us, so we chatted away for several minutes. His son who is 14, plays the violin and not basketball, and is uncomfortable with his 6'4" frame. I told him that someday he will find a tall woman who appreciates his height.. and then Cindy and I drove away with big smiles on our faces.
A few weeks later, I asked a cashier at a store how his day was going. He stopped, looked at me in the eyes and said, "I am actually having a terrible day." Without going into any detail, he said one of his kids was having trouble and he couldn't concentrate on work. It was so genuine and real that I stopped what I was doing too and told him that I was sorry. I would have loved to buy him lunch and hear all about it, but my four kids wouldn't have allowed it. And sadly, he had customers behind me and work to do. I walked away feeling more connected, not just to him, but to myself and everyone else. It was a good day... and I want more like it.
Well, it's getting late and this post has turned into something I didn't intend to write. Sometimes that can get me into trouble, but I am publishing it anyway and may or may not regret it in the morning... I will go to sleep wondering how we can change things. What can I do to remind myself to step out of my shell a little? Wear a string on my finger? It's not that I don't want to have genuine, honest connections with other people, it's that I get too absorbed in the mundane routine that I forget to notice that there are warm bodies all around me that want to be acknowledged. But then again, maybe they don't. Some people get really uncomfortable when you talk to them in public. Are you this way? If so, why? And then there are those bad strangers that you have to stay away from. How can I teach my kids to be friendly but also cautious of child molesters and kidnappers? I want them to be aware that bad things can happen, but not be afraid to say hello.... where do you find the balance?
On that note, I am going to rest my head on my pillow and think it over. Good night, vast internet family. Thank you for always being available when I feel like talking.
not this cute anymore!
The baby was opposed to listening to Christmas music before Thanksgiving (he gets that from his mother) and wanted to explore some place else. But he was quickly wrestled down... The big kids made him sit still because bad behavior in our school can get you in big trouble.
After several short lessons in math, spelling and reading it was time for recess. And because it was Simon's first official day in school, he was a little too shy to ask the popular kids if he could play.
I held his hand (and the rest of his body) and helped him join his brothers on the trampoline. They gladly welcomed him into their cool club and he didn't feel so alone anymore.
Homeschooling isn't for everyone. Sometimes I wonder if it's for me and my kids. Last night we all received Priesthood blessings to start out the school year and I felt the peaceful reassurance that it IS the right thing for our family. Ben and Luke are starting 4th grade together and Zack begins Kindergarten curriculum. Simon will soon learn that this is what we do in our family. We sing songs. We add numbers together every so often. We read great books and talk about them. We eat and play and laugh. We make big messes and we clean them up together. It's a lot of work... but I believe, deep down inside this crazy head of mine, that it's worth it.
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