…or at least it is certainly trying to Spring, though I fear that we have not seen the last of Winter’s ugly face just yet. We had a couple of days whose temperatures just barely reached the 70 degree mark when standing on their tippy-toes, and now we’re back in the 40’s.
But the cooler weather doesn’t seem to matter -- the Spring mentality has already settled in. Yesterday, as I huddled in my wool coat remembering Saturday’s sunny warmth, I saw several boys in t-shirts and shorts who apparently did NOT get the memo that the warmer weather was a temporary phenomenon. They didn’t even seem to care, proudly remaining in denial of the goosebumps on their legs. Uggs have been replaced with brightly colored galoshes. The stores have their Spring lines on display. Cadbury Cream Eggs tempt me at the checkout lines.
It is as if everyone is ready to move on to the next season.
And, believe me, I am not entirely innocent here. I am pushing Spring into the picture too… I spent a warm day’s lunch last week sitting in a park with an ice cream cone… and a long hour on Saturday laying in a hammock on our porch (Yes, our porch does have a hammock – Actually, two brightly colored ones which were put up by our downstairs neighbor for communal relaxation for all our building inhabitants – and they still make me laugh every time I see them). It seems to me that I am always wanting to move forward to the next stage, the next time, the next thing… and, I am beginning to see I’m not alone in this.
It’s something I’ve wondered about for a while – Why does contentment seem so out of reach? And, in particular – Why are we always looking ahead? Right now I am dying for bright Spring… but in a few months I’ll be begging for the heat of summer… then the beauty of Fall… then the picturesque holidays of Winter. The cycle never ends. And people do this in more areas of their life than just weather opinions…
The teen girl can’t wait to go to college... then she gets tired of college life and can’t wait to get into the “real world.” The girl lands a decent job… but then can’t be satisfied because it doesn’t feel like a CAREER. The girl is tired of being single… then once she is in a relationship, she is wondering when they’ll get married. The girl and boy become Mr. and Mrs. and move into a cute/affordable apartment… but they soon find the “charming” parts annoying and dream of the day they have saved up a down-payment for a house. The couple move into their dream house that finally has that extra bedroom for guests… and then wonder if its time to fill that extra space with a baby. The girl has baby… and patiently looks forward to the day he is old enough for her to get back to her career.
And, what I am realizing as I snack on my Cadbury Egg (yes, I did give in to check-out line temptation) is that we treat life like a race – stage after stage. And, the most annoying part is, if you are not buying into this life progression… and you are just happy where you are at, then people think you are :
A] Lying to Yourself -- “How could she possibly be really happy single?”
(Absurd. Why can’t a girl be independently happy in her own life?)
B] Making a Mistake -- “You want to wait how long to have kids? Thats dangerous.”
(Its not like I’m on world record pace, here! I’m only twenty-freaking-four!)
C] Dumb -- “That’s fine for her, but I wouldn’t want that.”
(Rude. Rude. Rude. And, probably mixed with a little Jealousy.)
The whole thing just makes me tired. Oh, I dont know, maybe I'll have more energy to talk about this in the Spring.
Oh, yeah -- just in case you are wondering about that world record pregnancy... I am happy to say I have plenty of time. This lady gave birth when she was SEVENTY:
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