Monday, August 2, 2010

Describe Yourself in Six Words

Today's mission on MISSion Amy K.R. blog was to come up with a six-word sentence to describe ourselves. I had so many ideas that seem to fit me perfectly, so I came up with ten sentences and had a hard time deciding which one to post. Can you guess which one I chose?

  • Reinventing myself over and over again.
  • Breaking out of cage of impossibilities.
  • Little push turns mediocrity into excellence.
  • Normal: an illusion of the mind.
  • Refusing norms and exploring the ellipsis…
  • Good can always be made better.
  • Looking to improve what doesn’t work.
  • Forty-something and just getting started.
  • Learning to see from other angles.
  • There is always a plan B.

Sunday, August 1, 2010

Being Interested Can Be the Greatest Gift

We were preparing to move to America. I was 12 years old. My grandmother, who had raised me exclusively from age 1 to 6 and intermittently after that, asked me if I wanted to go take a look at her new apartment where she will reside upon our departure. Without a second thought, I told her no, I had plans to hang out with friends. She did not ask me again. A month later, my parents, my brother, my sister, and I boarded a giant airplane headed for the U.S. I never got to see my grandmother's apartment. Two years later, she passed away.

I often try to imagine in my mind where and how she lived after we left. But I cannot see it. I have no memory of it, because I didn't bother to take an interest in the person that I loved the most and whose love I took for granted. It is one of my biggest regrets.

Today, I asked my kids if they would like to go look at my university campus where I will be spending much of my time for the next two years. Without a second thought, they said, no, they had other important and more interesting things to do.

Now I sit here wondering if my grandmother was as disappointed as I am now... and if my actions indicated to her that I had no interest in knowing any details about her life.




This song keeps playing in my head...