Dear Jared and Jade:
Very often, I feel like Charlie Brown's teacher in the cartoon "Peanuts."
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ss2hULhXf04
Mwah mwah mwah mwah waaaahhhh...
I know you don't hear me half of the time. I know you fall asleep like Peppermint Patty because I see the glazed look in your eyes. I know I bore you stiff with my constant yammering. I've tried to be interesting, scintillating even. I've yelled and screamed to get your attention. I've shed tears, stormed off, and pouted. I just want a minute of your time.
This is my latest project...Mom Letters. My hope is that one day, you will find a kernel of knowledge in these pages. Maybe it will be easier to read it than to hear it over and over again. This is my prayer.
The topic of today's letter is People You Will Meet In Your Life. There are so many interesting and unusual people in the world. It's like a huge sociology experiment! I enjoy watching people. Especially at the Tulsa State Fair. Seriously. Grab a corn dog (funnel cake for Jared) and a lemonade and just watch the humanity as it strolls by. Fascinating!
There are also mean people in the world who don't care one bit about you. You've probably already met a few of them. These folks see you walking through this world so happy and carefree, they just can't resist stretching out a foot to trip you.
Get back up. Dust yourself off and just keep going with a smile on your face. Remember the Japanese proverb, "Fall down 7 times, get back up 8."
You will meet Critical Chris. You can always rely on this person to find something wrong about you. Critical Chris laughs about how fat or skinny you are, or how tall or short you are. If you fall down or accidentally sneeze out a booger, Chris will be there to laugh hysterically. Before you know it, half the school will know. Often, Critical Chris will say something derogatory about your clothes, especially if your clothing isn't from Abercrombie and Fitch. When I was a kid, it was Izod, and I remember wanting an Izod shirt so badly. When I did get one, it didn't make me feel any better about myself. It was just a regular polo shirt with a creepy green alligator patch sewn onto it. It wasn't any better than any of the other shirts I had. Critical Chris feels so badly about himself that he has to make you feel bad, too. But don't let him steal your joy...not for one second. Critical Chris's are miserable bullies who have nothing better to do than torment people. And as Sweet Brown, one of my favorite Oklahoma philosophers says, "Ain't nobody got time for that!"
You will meet Popular Penelope. This person is the Queen Bee of the school, the most popular girl. Her blonde hair and blue eyes instantly get everyone's attention. Popular Penelope travels around in a pack with other girls who want to be just like her. You may find Popular Penelope attractive. Everyone does. Everyone wants to be her friend. The only problem is, you have to try to be something you're not to get close to her. Watch the movie "Mean Girls." That girl Regina George...she's Penelope. There's a reason why all of the kids in the school call her and her friends "The Plastics." When you get older, you'll understand that all of Penelope's nonsense is an effort to set up a pecking order. It's a really sad leftover from our vestigial brains and makes us no better than animals fighting for survival on the Serengeti. Don't worry if you get labelled a nerd, an outcast, or something else. When you go back to your 10-year high school reunion, you'll find that the people who thought they were hot in high school aren't any more and the people who were loners and outcasts have turned out great and have done some very interesting things. You'll be one of them, I just know it!
You will meet Stewart Screw-Up. Unfortunately, Stewart Screw-Up is robbing a village somewhere of it's idiot. Stewart's main goal in life is to PAR-TAY and he'll snort, drink, or swallow anything he can to get a nice buzz going. Stewart doesn't care about school because he's far too busy having a good time. He's living in the moment. Goals? "What are those?" Stewart will ask you. I am sorry to report that I dated more than my fair share of Stewart's. They are fun to be around, no doubt about it. Like me, you'll even want to "save" a Stewart or two. But Stewart Screw-Up has to figure this journey out on his own. Unfortunately, he often has to slide further down the drain before he "gets it." Don't go down with him.
There are also nice people. You will meet Quinton The Quiet Guy. Everybody ignores poor Quinton. He's not the first person you notice when you walk in the room. He's not like Penelope and Stewart. He's more chameleon-like...he blends into the wallpaper. He's usually very smart and interesting, but nobody's taken the time to figure it out yet. Take the time to get to know Quinton. You'll have to speak first, because he won't take the initiative. He's too shy for that. You'll be surprised to know what you and Quinton have in common and you'll likely have a friend for life. Everyone deserves to be noticed and heard.
Then there's Tess the Terrific Teacher. Tess loves a curious mind. She will challenge you, make you work hard, test the limits of what you think you can do, and encourage you to reach for the stars. You may despise Tess at first. You may be tempted to leave her class and go to a classroom where the teacher doesn't expect that much. Tess is every good student's friend. She loves to help children learn new things. God places teachers like Tess in our lives for a reason. I've had several Tess's in my life. The way to know you have Tess for a teacher is to listen to her words. If she speaks words of praise and encouragement over you and makes you believe in yourself, you've found your Tess. Hold on dearly to her. She is helping you to grow.
There are so many more people I want to introduce you to, but I'll save those for another letter. Before I close, I want you both to know how much I love you. That will never change. I am your biggest fan!
Love,
Mom
