When I was pregnant with Seven, I went to the chiropractor regularly. It started before he was born.
I have a lot of responsibilities. Some might say, more responsibilities than I am capable of keeping up with. So in order to get a break, sometimes my body just quits working. This can look like a head cold, a stomach bug, or a sudden, unexpected nap. In this case, I tried to lift my head off of my pillow one Monday morning and it felt like something in my neck had snapped.
Before our most recent trip to Tobago, I picked up a few books at the library for pleasure reading. One of them was Ghosts of Greenglass House, by Kate Milford. I didn’t realize till we arrived at our destination that the book I had picked was actually the second in a series. I was already into it, and there were too many characters for me to set it down if I ever hoped to finish it. I kept reading. I planned to get the first book out of the library when I got home.
This weekend, I lived an introverted homebody’s nightmare: I went to the Bronx Zoo on a beautiful holiday weekend with six kids, and I went to the mall afterward to get new shoes for Two, who is the most indecisive shoe shopper I have ever met. Perhaps that’s one reason why she has only one pair of shoes.
Many times, I get so caught up in needing everything to be just right before I get started, that I never actually do anything meaningful.
Back when I was looking for pants that fit, I did a search for red chinos. I knew exactly what color I was looking for — a faded, orange-red. In fact, I found some online, but only in boys’ sizes. As it turns out, that shade of red isn’t “in” this season for ladies. All I could find for myself was a washed-out pink color. Close enough, I thought. And they were on sale.
I had a boy in mind for the red pants I had found. I didn’t spring for them until I saw them in person in Branson, MO at a Gap outlet. I knew they’d be perfect for Four, and they were. He wears them for days at a time, and I have to peel them off of him to wash them when they get so dingy I can’t take it anymore.
I got my pink pair several months before I got Four his pants in the color I wanted. When I saw our pants side by side, my gears started turning. I thought, I’ve dyed some different items before, maybe I could just match the color.
The TLDR? Don’t take your journey when you’re stressed or in crisis.
When I heard about the Enneagram from a friend, I liked the idea right away. Like many people, I suspect, I like taking quizzes that tell me more about who I am. Even better if there are details, things I can really resonate with, and in this case, a compassionate narrative to walk alongside as you (re)discover your strengths and weaknesses.
