OFF switch for my brain

Listen. Listen very carefully. Do you hear that? It’s the sound of silence. Blessed silence. The kids are tucked into bed. Jim is out playing softball, hopefully winning AND avoiding mud at the same time. It’s ten o’clock and my house is comfortably quiet. I can actually hear the refrigerator humming if I listen carefully.

I love it when it’s quiet. I don’t even mind going on road trips by myself – because then I don’t have to listen to the radio, or engage in conversation – I can let my mind be quiet and simply appreciate the scenery as it flashes by. The moments when my brain slows down are few and far between, so I’ve learned to really stop and appreciate the times when it takes a break.

Ever have one of those nights where your brain just won’t turn off? When you have lyrics from a song stuck in your head, or your mind is busily making lists of the things you need to do, or you can’t even count to 25 because you get distracted with another thought? Does your brain ever feel like that squirrel on the “Over the Hedge” movie – the squirrel named Hammy? Remember when he ingests some caffeine and starts talking and going bezerk? Yeah – that is my brain on a regular basis. I can be completely exhausted, physically and mentally wiped out – and my brain is still plugged in, zooming along, and not stopping for anything.

I’m just glad that my sister shares the problem with me. I don’t know how many times I’ve gotten on the computer in the middle of the night because I thought of something and she immediately responds to my email. Then we have to start laughing (via email) and it goes downhill into goofiness from there. Sisters are the best.

Laugh of the day – the look on Jim’s face when he saw the floor in my office. I was cleaning out old papers and organizing files, but it looked like complete chaos and there was no place for him to step through. But hey – I knew what everything was and had a plan! The floor is clean now, files are organized and things are *mostly* put away.

Actually – the mess of stuff on the floor reminded me of my BFF Pam. Her room was always a disaster zone when we were growing up. I loved it. Now I’ve got two kids at opposite extremes – Caleb likes things neat and Conner likes things messy. And me – I just want my brain to shut-up so I can go to bed.