Monday, May 17, 2010

Your Screws Are Loose


I love spending one-on-one time with each of my kids. I get to see them for who they are. I get to see their personalities when they aren't competing for my attention, and what I see, I love. One night while Erin was in the shower, Pearce and I were sitting on the sofa writing words. Okay, so I was writing words, and he was sounding them out. The letters he would write down didn't make words yet. In the process, Pearce did something goofy. What exactly I can't remember, but what was said next, I remember verbatim.

             "Did you know you have a few screws loose?" I asked thinking his five-year-old mind wouldn't
             get the meaning.             "I know," he said. Then leaning his head forward he said, "Could you tighten 'em up?"

 I started chuckling, and I acted like I was tightening them and made some odd noise because boys are all about motion and sound effects.
 Pearce looked at me and said, "No, it goes like this – brrrr." He made the sound of an electric drill, and he showed me how to hold my finger against his head. So I did as I was instructed, and then he turned his head so the screws were tightened on every side of his head.

He never missed a beat. (How could I not love this kid? I wish I could share this and so much more with his birth mother.) Have you ever thought somebody had a few screws loose? If you're reading this, you may be thinking, "Yeah, you" (meaning me).
 I encourage you to take the time to appreciate the difference in someone else. Our God is not a vanilla God nor did He make a vanilla world. Consider what their spiritual gift might be, their temperament, and their background. What makes them tick? When I'm investigating someone for a potential fraud case, I watch and I listen. I want to find out what makes them tick. When I take their statements I find out what their nervous ticks are, and they usually come out when they are lying. This one guy I interviewed had a nervous habit of picking his nose every time I would ask him questions about what happened to his car after he left it abandoned on the side of the road. That's just one example.

Appreciate the differences in sense of humor. It's okay to agree to disagree. Not everything is a competition. Breathe. We get so busy that we miss truly seeing the people around us, people in our own lives! Take time to get to know someone knew. God might have put them in your life for a very specific reason, a season or a lifetime. Figure it out. Invest in someone else outside your circle. Move beyond the boundaries you preset which often are not the boundaries God sets. So what if they think you are an odd duck? You're a grown adult. You know who you are and whose you are by now – don't you? Take a chance. I will tell you I was hurt one time very badly by a very dear and close friend. I was hurt so badly that I closed the door on all close relationships outside of my family and marriage. It has taken me years to allow others to see me for who I am without the veil we all wear from time-to-time. And truth be known, I do have a few screws loose. If I didn't, do you think I could really be a good mommy? If I didn't have a few screws loose, would I be able to accept others who are different from me (which is – HELLO!—everyone)? If I didn't have a few screws loose, would you ever read my stuff? I think not.


1 comment:

  1. Hey, Kristy! I loved this! And, yes, I do have some loose screws floating around---but you already knew that!

    Great lesson that you've shared today, my friend. Hope that you and your family have a great one!
    Hugs!
    Susan

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