You can Easy do That

In my family, like all families I'm sure, we like to laugh and remember, and one of our favorite quotes comes from my grandma. She was known for being just a teensy bit on the bossy side, and if you were to balk at one of her requests/orders, she would shut you down immediately with, "Oh, you can easy do that."

Drop her off at the front door of the store and take the wheel to navigate her fancy boat of a car to a parking spot, even though you are naught but 14 years old with a brand spanking new learner's permit? You can easy do that.

Scramble up the rickety fold-down ladder to her sweltering attic and sort through items in the dark until you found the obscure gadget she needed? You can easy do that.

Answer her phone while she has both hands in the giant bowl of bread dough, thereby remaining trapped in a conversation with someone who knows your grandma, your mom, and your entire life history but you have no idea who they are? You can easy do that.

These stories are hilarious in retrospect but, the problem is, she was right. We actually could easy do that, even if it made us uncomfortable or we felt we weren't ready. 

And, perhaps I have a tiny bit of my grandma in me. When I decided to make sourdough bread, I read one recipe with instructions and then got tired of reading about it and wanted to just do it already. I can easy do this. So, I started fermenting and mixing and proofing and made a series of loaves that could have served as doorstops until I figured it all out. 

Maybe we all should be willing to at least try a learn-by-doing approach without being forced to by a bossy grandmother. It is good to have practice with attempting something before we are assured that we are good at it, simply because life often demands that you do things before you feel ready. Of course, failure is inevitable, and it is good to get comfortable with that. Each iteration is a learning process, and being able to repeat the try-fail-learn-try again cycle is a muscle that we develop over time. 

I hope that I remain willing to try new things and to fail at them (like this blog, perhaps?). It helps to imagine my grandma scoffing and saying, You can easy do that.

Popular posts from this blog

Seasons of Change

Image
If I had to write a three-point sermon about why August is wonderful, it would go like this: sunflowers, swimming, sweet corn.  In August, especially the beginning, summer feels like it will last forever; we all get complacent and think that fall will never come... ... but then, I spot the first aster blooms and a sprinkling of yellow leaves on the cottonwood tree, and responsibilities that were tiny on the horizon suddenly loom larger and then are here. The garden becomes a neglected jungle as we adjust to new priorities, and our dog gives us sad eyes as we pack up each morning for a day away from home. Time is regimented into strict daily and weekly rhythms instead of the day-by-day flow we had enjoyed. The transition is not easy. We are tired. In the spring, our life seems to explode outwards as the weather warms. We spend more time outside and pick up projects that we had left behind or dreamed of all winter. During the summer, we roam and explore and work and play in an even w...
Read more

Watch and Wait

Image
So often, the most pertinent questions come in a child's voice. This morning, on the way to school, I heard from the back seat, "Mom, when will it not be January anymore?" When, indeed. This has been the Januariest of Januaries for me. I feel that I've stumbled into the new year and then, instead of recovering, fell flat on my face. The month is (finally?) almost gone and the Christmas tree is still the centerpiece of the living room. I've been sick since the holiday, coughing and sniffling and doing the bare minimum to keep functioning. What day is it? I have a vague idea. What's happening tomorrow? Uh, let me think... I have a nagging feeling of being just a bit behind on everything, that there are things I'm forgetting, and of barely staying afloat. I have said more than a few times - when will I catch up?  How can I get on top of things? I just need to find my stride! What I am really desiring can probably be narrowed down to two things, in the end: pr...
Read more

Otium Sanctum

While reading this week, I came across an ancient Latin phrase that called to me: otium sanctum.  Translated as "holy leisure," this phrase seeks to encapsulate a balanced life centered in peace, in which all daily work is done with an openness to and acknowledgement of the presence of God. Sounds nice, doesn't it? My kids have taken to writing a daily newspaper, wherein each family member gets their own column, updating on the goings-on and status of our household. My most recent update opened with, "We think mom is stressed," followed by what I sincerely hope was an ill-judged, hyperbolic attempt at humor, "LIVES AT RISK!" Yet, I admit that they were probably on to something. I write this from my office, which currently looks like chaos in physical form, with piles of scribbled lists peeking out from under papers to be graded, various textbooks open to pages that were important at one time for some reason, and numerous half-empty drink containers. Th...
Read more