Never Have I Ever

written a blog before

gone to seminary

written a college essay paper over ten pages

wanted to do any of the above

gone to the movie theater alone because I actually wanted to see the movie and not listen to my friends talk through the whole thing. 

hidden chocolate from my kids

crossed the street to avoid someone

eaten raw cookie dough

enjoyed doing all of the above

DOING WHAT I NEVER…

I’m a pretty straightforward, what you see is what you get, kind of person. At the same time I am also very private. I don’t consider myself to be one person with friends and someone else with family or coworkers. I am who I am. I don’t make excuses and very few apologies. I can be deep and really intense and jokingly lighthearted all at the same time. I might not reveal everything about myself the first time we meet, but if you hang you will get to see the multifaceted creature that I am.

I like solitude and inner contemplation. I like people and activity. I like being organized and spontaneous. I like soft quiet music and loud exuberant worship. I like dancing and singing and being silly. I like getting lost in thought and meditative prayer. I like extroverted expression and introverted reflection. And I quickly move from one facet to another. As I have gotten older my reflexes have slowed. My ability to engage in high energy activity has diminished somewhat. I spend more time in quietness than I do in noise. Like most introverts I replenish in silence. Once I have gotten replenished however I usually want to be around other people. I don’t like isolation but I do appreciate times of solitude. I enjoy people but I have little tolerance for drama.

MY BRAIN IS BEING SQUEEZED

This project forces me into serious times of confinement, which is okay to a point. While I enjoy studying and deep thinking I am a verbal processor. I am also very experientially driven. I receive through experience as much as I take in information and data. I have been known to bounce back and forth from left brain to right brain like a badminton match. I can be quite organized and yet jump from subject to subject. Frankly in order to complete this project I will have to pull out all the stops. This is challenging intellectually, physically and emotionally, not to mention spiritually. I hesitate to articulate it this way, however, this has now become my life.

In an effort to make sure I stay balanced through this endeavor I am constructing a schedule that incorporates physical exercise, personal refreshment and social interaction. I have to set a timer so I don’t lose track of time and forget to eat. I did that yesterday and it was eight o’clock at night before I had dinner. Old people should not eat that late it’s hard to digest and I was up half the night. I have a great app “time out.” I can adjust the intervals but basically it interrupts me with a reminder to take a break.

I’m out of here for now. I have to make dinner and I’ve got some reading I want to get to. Have a good night ya’ll.