Trampoline Sidewalks and the Agony of being 10

Sit gazing at just about any public pool nearing the bliss and freedom of summer and you quickly begin to notice a peculiar phenomenon. Children in the near vicinity of the pool seemingly not only forget what the basic concept of walking is...they literally bounce off of the sidewalk. This mysterious occurrence, fueled by hundreds of hours contained in a teeny tiny desk all year, countless Ring Pops and Fruit Roll-Ups, and the concrete's temperature nearing roughly 1,000,000 degrees Fahrenheit, produces the sort of unrestrainable energy that sprints, hops, and skips uncontrollably. The idea that these raging little whirlwinds of sugared life force could be slowed down by apoplectic parents yelling repeatedly, or even more laughable, by bored looking lifeguards who not only look like they are too young to have a driver's permit, but also look like they stopped at KFC for a good deep fry before showing up...Well, it's ridiculous. Everyone knows that mere words and straight jackets could not restrain these little ones. If a child does manage for .5 seconds to slow down at all, it is with such obvious chagrin, with such pained, pent-up momentum, that they obviously have to redirect their energy into the concrete thus changing it into something springy that literally propels them off of the ground again, starting the vicious cycle of "NO RUNNING!!!"s over again. Well, that's my scientific explanation anyway.  

So after I've observed and dissected that rather marvelous phenomenon, I move on to the more complicated inexplicable phenomenon you can witness at a public pool-- The drama of life as a ten-year old girl. The kids  I babysit are Jillian, 9, and John, 11. (all names used here are changed*) So naturally all their friends are in this 8-12 year old range and just overflowing with elementary school angst. And who do they share the secrets of their angst with? Well, the nanny of course! Here's about how the conversation with one of their friends, Becky, went: 

Becky: So I like that boy Jimmy (pointing to a scrawny little guy raucously swimming in the deep end)

Me: Oh yeah? Tell me about him. 

Becky: Well...we kind of have this thing. 

Me: Oh really?  

Becky: Yeah...in Math class, I look at him and he looks at me and I look at him and he smiles and i smile and we both start laughing... 

Me: Oh my...that is quite a thing...  

Becky: I know!! Should I go tell him Hi? 

Me: Do it!!! 

Becky: :sigh: No, I can't, I can't! Ahhhh!! ::giggle:: ::sigh:: 

And suddenly, with this sharing of her soul, I have been magically accepted into the inner sanctum of ten-year-old girlhood, because seemingly evaporating out of the pool jets there appears three other little girls who immediately start giggling and gushing about their crushes to me.  Two of the girls even like the same boy! And they don't even care. They just giggle and wave at the oblivious little suckers. We'll see if they're still giggling when they are 16 and like the same guy. But I digress. I guess the refreshing thing about it all is...what if the most important part of your day was "well, he looked at me, and I looked at him, and he smiled so I smiled, and then we both started laughing"?? So sweet, so innocent, so simple. And her whole world is revolving around that laugh, that smile. What if your whole day revolved around making the ones you loved smile? And that was enough to just make your day. Happy Summer, folks!

I'm right here.

My two year-old nephew Grant (while standing right in front of Laura and me): "Mom. Mom. Mommy. Mommy. MOMMY! MOMMY!" (Repeat 19 more times)
My exceptionally patient older sister, Laura: "Yes, baby?"
Grant: I'm right here.  

The first time he ever did this to me (just insert "Annie" where "Mommy" was and repeat roughly 19-2000 times), my first logical-minded mental reaction was, "Yes, Grant, it would be impossibly difficult to ignore the fact that you are right here...Thank you." Then my next thought was "Ah boys, they need that affirmation from us, especially from their momma. That's what all the psychologists say anyway..." But the more he does it, the more I see that it is a much simpler, deeper need than that. And it is not a two-year-old boy need that will go away in a couple of years. He is just vocalizing what every person you come into contact with is screaming without using words. Look at me. Affirm me. Let me know that who I am is good and that my very being is good. Let me know that my life has purpose and that I am loved. Try not to miss the next opportunity you are given to affirm those around you; your co-workers, family, spouse, friends, acquaintances. We are surrounded by people who are living in quiet desperation.. people who are starving for assurance that who they are and not what they do or will do.... is enough. People silently screaming "I'm right here!!" 




“The greatest disease in the West today is not TB or leprosy; it is being unwanted, unloved, and uncared for. We can cure physical diseases with medicine, but the only cure for loneliness, despair, and hopelessness is love. There are many in the world who are dying for a piece of bread but there are many more dying for a little love. The poverty in the West is a different kind of poverty -- it is not only a poverty of loneliness but also of spirituality. There's a hunger for love, as there is a hunger for God.”
― Mother Teresa

Where's your tire swing?

I live on the country side of Carencro. If you've ever been down Mills Rd. maybe you've had the pleasure of rolling your windows down and seeing the sun set over a pasture of grazing cows. It really is a simple, beautiful thing to see. Something I notice almost every time I'm on Mills is this one tire swing. No, it's not the one pictured, but it is just as picturesque in my mind. To me, it represents a time that people my age can hardly recognize anymore. A Timeless existence. One not dictated by the ring of an Iphone, the glare of a TV screen, or the range of your wireless router. A time when kids were free to roam and play and people didn't make time for family and friends, family and friends were all you had.  Every time I see that tire swing, I smile. But you know what I realized yesterday? Not ONCE, have I EVER seen children playing on it. Maybe it's an old couple that lives near it now and the swing is just a reminder of a different time and generation-- but to me, it represents more than that. When was the last time you thought, "yeah, I love going for long walks at sunset, or a nice picnic outside, or yeah, I would love to spend more time reading Scripture or going to Adoration.." And how often does it stop at just that. A goal, a dream, a distant wish.. that we don't make time for. Because we are too busy on our Iphone, or writing a blog - ;) - or picking up your kids from school, and scheduling out every second of our day. Maybe one Sunday this Lent, turn all electronics off and go back to timelessness. Where is your tire swing? And what's held you back from going for a nice swing???

Lonely socks and mismatched people

 If the name of the blog is confusing-- a little explanation: Liminality is a scientific term for a space in between two places or a threshold. I just like the word itself and feel like we all sometimes feel like we are in some unnamed space in between,, waiting for the next stage in our lives and not always embracing the present. :)

And onto the first legitimate blog entry of Senator Annie "Danger O'Malley" Connolly... 

Don't you hate when you haven't done laundry in awhile and you run out of socks? Grumbling, you rummage through and cast aside the stretched out, elastic-less, unmatched workout socks and the random Spongebob Christmas toe-sock,, dimly hoping you'll stumble upon a freshly washed, perfectly matched pair of socks to wear on a rainy day... Alas, your mood ever darkening, you always end up with the nasty unmatched ankle socks where one of them comes up slightly higher on one foot than the other foot and it bothers you in the back of your mind all day...  

No, my first ever blog entry is not solely about socks (eh heh. sole-ly...get it? You see what I did there?) It's just you can learn something from your sock drawer... 

There are so many lonely and worn out people in our world y'all. Yet we overlook them. You know the people I'm talking about. They are awkward and overlooked. And when do we reach out to these kinds of people? When do we initiate conversation? I know I don't sometimes unless I'm FORCED into that person's presence and have no way out. They are my last pick. They are the mismatched socks in my sock drawer. The ones with the awkward kitty pom poms that dig into your ankles. (ok, i don't have socks like that but now I wish I did)  

I'm not advocating wearing horrendous socks in a fashion statement to reach out to awkward people...I AM advocating making yourself radically available to listen to people sometimes. Even the people you just don't like. Don't leave them for last. Don't listen 'because it's the Christian thing to do'. Listen because you are genuinely interested in the well-being of a fellow brother or sister in Christ. 

Toe-tally yours, (i went there)  

Annie