Escape

What Are You Staring At?

Jeanna G3 Comments

Back in the day, if you caught someone staring, you’d say, “Take a picture, it’ll last longer!” Now no one looks at each other, and all we do is take pictures. Like thousands of pictures. And I bet 90% of them are of the most mundane things!

In the grocery store the other day, my daughter was taking pictures of the shelves of pickles. I asked her, “Are you afraid you’ll forget this moment? Do you need this documentation for later reference?” She rolled her eyes. “It’s aesthetic, mom.” Aesthetic? I’ll show you aesthetic, child.

The next morning I dragged her out of bed and drove her to a state park. We hiked several miles through the woods to a waterfall. We sat and stared at the flowing water. I interrupted the serenity of the moment and said to her, “Take a picture, it’ll last longer.”

I got a side-eye, but then she whipped out her phone and started taking countless pictures of our natural surroundings. Then, on the hike back to the car, she stared at all the photos she took, and tripped over several tree roots in the process.

Staring is often considered rude, but I say stare away. Stare at the clouds changing shapes. Stare at the ocean waves rolling in. Stare at the sun rays filtering through the canopy of rustling leaves. Stare at the hummingbird hovering over the feeder. Stare at the face of your loved ones. Stare at the moon and the twinkling stars. Stare at a field of wildflowers dancing in harmony. Stare at a horde of fireflies putting on a light show. And once your eyes get tired, take a picture so it’ll last longer.

Figment

Jeanna G2 Comments

While coaching volleyball one night this summer, we had only 6 girls show up to play. I said, “I guess I’ll just be over on the bench by myself this match!” One of the players replied, “Nah, your imaginary friend can keep you company!”

What she doesn’t know is that, when I was a child, I had a whole imaginary crew to keep me company. Despite being the youngest of five kids growing up in my house, I did a lot of playing on my own. Except, I didn’t sound like I was alone because I was usually talking to my good friend, Tommy. No one else could see or hear him, but he was very real to me. He even drove a red blazer!

I don’t know how I had time for Tommy though, because I was very busy raising my thirteen kids in the land of make-believe. Maybe I heard one too many nursery rhymes about women living in shoes, otherwise I have no clue where else that whopper of a storyline could have come from. Now I don’t think I ever blamed Tommy when I got in trouble, but people sure did start to wonder what his relationship was with my kids.

I overheard my daughter talking to herself the other day, so I peeked around the corner to see if maybe she had a Tommy of her own. She was dancing, jumping around, and laughing, so I thought it must be her imagination running wild in there! Then I heard another voice and realized she was on FaceTime with a friend. Strange as it seems, I was somewhat disappointed that I was wrong! Well, I’m not disappointed that her friends are not figments of her imagination, I just hope that she’s allowing her imagination to reach its full potential.

Around the same time that I was hanging out with Tommy, I was fascinated with the Disney character named Figment. He was a purple dragon-like creature who would put on a multitude of disguises and use his imagination to discover all sorts of things. Maybe Figment is why I still can’t make up my mind about who I want to be when I grow up. Why be one thing when you can be so much more (or at least pretend to be)?

Summer Lovin’

Jeanna GLeave a comment

I’m not a fan of summer. I do not like being hot. I like sweating even less. I would stay inside all summer, if I could, but my dogs, job, and the social responsibility of my yard make that impossible. The only thing that saves summer for me is the beach. I love the beach. As someone who promotes juvenescence, the beach is the perfect stage.

At the beach, being chill and taking naps is encouraged. There’s no powering through the day to be as productive as possible. The beach actually, naturally, works against any attempts at big adult thoughts. You start to have one and then —Sploosh! — a big wave takes you out. Then you try to have another one and —Yoo-Hoo! — calls that unique shell, half hiding in the sand. You’re about to contemplate something real adult-like and then — Swoosh! — a seagull flies by and steals that chip right out of your hand. Look! A ghost crab! And what just jumped out of the water? Did you see that? Ayeeee! Something slimy just brushed my leg!

Can’t concentrate, can you? It’s okay. Give in to the sound of the waves. Be mesmerized by the sun rays shimmering across the water. Let your most earnest query be, “Is that a buoy or a lighthouse in the distance?” Did you even realize you single-handedly built a mud castle while you watched that pelican dive for lunch? Who can spit their cherry seeds the farthest? Who can hold their handstand the longest in the waves? Go ahead, pretend you’re a mermaid or a pirate. Everyone’s doing it. Let go. Hakuna Matata. Live Aloha. But put on your sunscreen. Seriously. A sunburn will erase all the fun.