Saturday, August 11, 2012

happiness is an adirondack chair... or I used to be funny

Yesterday's post both depressed and freed me.  Sorry if it depressed you, but hurray if it made you think even just a tiny bit as much it did me. Here's the thing: I used to be friggin' hilarious y'all.  For reals.  I'm not completely sure that I am anymore and this makes me sad.

Ok.  I think the funny is still underneath all the ridiculous that has clouded over me in the last couple of years.  I thought about it while I was cleaning out of my classroom.  Well, actually, I think about it and how to get it back a lot, and I've been getting little clues, especially lately.  What do they say, when the student is ready, the teacher will appear?  Truth, I believe.

Anyway, every morning that I run, I make sure to run past my favorite buildings, they relax me and make me happy.  That's what it's all about anyway, right?  One of my favorite houses sits on corner in a big, inviting yard and on the porch, that seems like it would the perfect place to watch the sunset, bright yellow adirondack chairs are situated, contrasting beautifully against the bluish gray of the house.  There is something magically charming about this house, but I decided this morning that without the chairs, this house would hardly stand out.

And so, it occurred to me, that while the classic picture of white adirondack chairs on the beach is similarly and absolutely a picture of relaxation and peace, it is the chairs themselves that make the dream almost tangible.

The thing is that the chairs are simple, vibrant, relaxed, and sturdy.  In a word, they are confident.  Those yellow chairs on the porch or white ones on the beach aren't afraid that the sun won't always shine and they know that they will always find proper footing no matter how unleveled the ground is beneath them.  They do not advertise for people to join them, but their welcoming nature makes doing so easy and enjoyable.

Ok, so the chairs are not funny.  But they are authentic.  And authentic can be, at the very least, humorous if it is, in fact, authentic.

God already knows that I'm a little bit of a big-headed type-A chica who would rather be in control of, oh I don't know, everything.  I'm sure that it has been no coincidence that everything I've encountered today, from my daily Bible verse to my Aquarian horoscope, have focused on the concepts of simplicity and patience; two words that, when authentic, scream confidence.  I guess the lesson here is that in order for me to get my funny back, I need to regain my confidence.  In order to regain my confidence, the true confidence that God's got a perfect plan for me, I have to be patient with that plan and quit trying to complicate things by forcing square pegs into round holes.  In short,  I need to relax, let my big head chill out in one of those phenomenal adirondack chairs, and watch God's plan unfold.

photo credit: Rosa Say via photo pin cc

2 comments:

  1. For the past few years I, too, have felt that I have lost my humor. I think that it comes at times when I feel relaxed and when I am not not stressed and when I am around people who I know can appreciate my humor.

    I find that since earlier this year when I started to "reset my life" there have been more occasions when I feel that way and that I have had more occasions when I feel funny again. Hopefully, you will find more moments where you feel relaxed. (I think I mentioned that program of resetting to you; perhaps I can send you the links and you can try it out - some parts of it were helpful and prompted more thoughts on what I truly want and need and can do to make my life more relaxed, effective, and just better.)

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    1. Thanks for the encouragement! I would love to look over the links and try it out! And by the way, I think you're pretty funny :)

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