What's Normal?

Often, I like to just step back and analyze my life, who I am as a person, what I need to change and so on. I guess I could blame it on my A.P. English teacher, Mrs. Clay. She was my teacher for 11th and 12th grade and we had to analyze everything! Why did the author choose this word? Why did he start with this sentence? What does this color or name mean? I used to hate it! I remember saying one time, "Can't they sometimes just write it just because it sounded good, just to pick it? Does there always have to be some sort of meaning?" I think the answer is yes, that is, if you want it to have meaning, it will. Little did I know then, that she was just trying to "raise" critical thinkers. Now, I appreciate that.

Anyway, I digressed a little. Back to me. LOL. Yesterday, when my girls were outside swimming (YEAH, we got approval from the pool people that it is ready! Mike did a great job!). I was trying to take pictures of the girls and I found myself saying to them: "Come on girls, act normal." So they would try to look different, but it still was not "normal". So I said a little frustrated, "ACT NORMAL!" No matter how hard they tried, they could not do it. So I just said, "Fine, when you grow up, don't blame me when you look at all the pictures--what few there are-- and say, how come you didn't take any normal pictures of us, one's where we don't look goofy." The girls just looked at me for a second, and then went on their merrily way swimming. The look that they gave me stopped me in my tracks. I'm not proud of myself, for those remarks. In that moment a voice recording of all the times I have said it to my girls quickly played in my mind. It made me stop to think, "So, what is normal anyway?"

Is normal living by the worlds standard? After thinking what all of that entails, I hope not. Is normal being like our neighbors, or their children? Is normal being popular? Or is it being like me? Again, I hope not. Wouldn't the world be a boring place if we were all "normal". After much ponder, I would like to think that being normal could be just being one self, but does the world, or better yet do we, or I make that an easy task?

For example, Ariel has often been looked at as "a little different", not, I guess what many would say, normal. Sometimes, it even makes her the butt of jokes (which as a mother, makes me sad). She's not a girly, girl. She doesn't care about wearing the latest fashions to fit in, she thinks for herself, she's VERY smart, she doesn't care that that's what everyone else is doing. I have seen people try to change who she is--even me, her own mom tries to change her. But let me tell the world now: Ariel, I don't want you to change who you are. I'm proud that you are not afraid to be different. I think it is that special personality that makes you that strong, wonderful special spirit that Heavenly Father bore witness to me of.

Ariel has had many spiritual experiences, that are not for me to write about. Experiences that I have not, and probably will never have, all by her tender age of ten. But I think she has had them because she is not "normal". And I realized that the people who truly get Ariel and love her are those who appreciate the fact that she is normal--she is herself. She truly understands the quote by Dr. Seuss that I have under my blog title, which I happen to love. It reads: "Be who you are and say what you feel because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind."

I know, I often try to fit the normal mold--am I skinny enough, am I dressed good enough, did I say that right, will they like me? In doing so, I often loose myself. So my next thought is this, why can't we be a people who embraces everyone for who they are, not just those who are like us, those who are in our eyes "normal"?

My thoughts are, I can and I should. I think that is a little with what's wrong with the world today. We don't love enough. Am I kind to only those who I think deserve my kindness? I want to teach my children better--although, I think sometimes they do know more than I. I often think about a remark made byth a previous Bishop I had. Bishop Lund basically said, that their daughter came here perfect, she didn't have bad habits/traits until she learned it from them, her parents. My children have picked up a lot of my bad habits in my efforts to make them "normal". So, I want to change today.

Girls, here's to being "Normal"...here's to being YOURSELF--the best way to be!