Everybody Stims

"Let Go or Be Dragged." (Attributed to a Zen proverb) As the youngest child in our family gets ready to attend middle school in the fall, I want to post and re-post this video until everyone sees it and internalizes it:  Ethan and I put this together one day, years ago when he was home sick in the third grade. ( https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W6Zs8DS2wBE) Despite this big, looming transition in September, this summer has been one of our best ever. But it has also been one of the hardest. I find myself internally clinging to the last weeks of carefree, total abandon that comes with having to answer to no one about my children's participation in school. No homework due, no missing art fees, no IEP meetings, no phone calls about missed meds, no emails about what to do when a new behavior crops up, not even a measly picture day reminder slip. Freedom.  The break is welcome and happy, the kids are tan from playing outside and snuggly with sle...

These two. They just blow me away. With their two brains working together they were unstoppable.  Thank you, Annie and Helen. You showed 'em. Helen and Annie When I was 16, I auditioned to be Helen Keller in our high school's production of   The Miracle Worker , a beautiful three-act play by William Gibson based on Keller's autobiography:  The Story of My Life . It literally changed the path of my entire life, thanks to a brilliant teacher and director, LouAnne Durham, who could both 1) Manage to organize the circus of hormones called Teenagers in Drama, and 2) Create something beautiful out of our chaos using a great script, her own skill, extreme patience and sheer tenacity.  She made us do more than just recite lines and learn blocking. She talked to us about the relationships between characters. In preparation even before practice she challenged me to experience life in different ways to get a hint of what Helen may have felt. She had me wear vi...