"Mother, may
I take three giant steps?"
"No, but you
may take 4 ballet twirls."
Do you
remember playing this game as a child? It
was a favorite one of all of the kids I grew up
with, especially with extra dancing steps thrown
in since we were all dancers. Of course,
no one warned me that the game was training for
the real life version of "Mom, can I?"
You play
this game, right? "Mom, can I have this?
Mom, can I do that?" And when they ask, I
am tempted for a second to answer with that
grown up staple, "Of course you can, but may
you?" Instead, I answer the question and
watch my children practice the art of
negotiation. And, let me tell you, they
may be ready for professional status soon.
The month of
May always reminds me of this game. It is
always a month of choices. Certainly, I
might want to do everything that will appear on
the calendar: birthdays, graduations,
Mother's Day, National Scrapbooking Day, first
communions, and more. And add to that the
children's end of school year activities:
field trips, picnics, plays, programs, and
exams. At work, I have final exams, end of
year meetings, letters of recommendation, and
graduation. At home, there is a garden to
plant, winter to clean up, and summer furniture
to haul out of storage. Can I do it all?
Gee, it was
sure simpler when it the giant steps were actual
instead of metaphorical, wasn't it? The
good news? Everything on the list makes
for a great layout--being a scrapbooker keeps me
looking for the photo opportunity in the middle
of crazy.
Wishing you
a May that you can do!
