I took my grandmother back to the clinic again today so they could draw some more blood. I swear they have vampires working in the back and won't be satisfied until she doesn't have any left.
Afterwards, we went for some lunch and I had the opportunity to chat with her for well over an hour. We talked a little about tempers and how people in our family handle getting mad. Apparently my grandfather (now gone some twenty years) and I had the same kinds of terrible, hot tempers. Grandpa, at fourteen, apparently blew up at his mother, though, and said some things to her that he regretted for a long time. At that point, he resolved that he would never again let his temper get the better of him. Grandma tells me that he did a really good job of that and never or rarely did. I went through a similar awakening at about sixteen when I realized that my temper was costing me far more than I ever gained from it. I haven't always been able to keep it under control, but it's rare when it gets the best of me and every time it does it reminds me why I need to be more careful.
My grandfather wasn't the only one with a temper on that side of the family, though. He had a sister, Mamie, that had quite a terrible temper, but unlike my grandfather, she seemed to enjoy it. Grandma described to me today how my aunt Mamie would go over to her grandkids house and get in a fight over something within ten minutes. Even though she might have been asked to stay over, she'd get out of there late at night and stomp home. Along the way, every block or so, was a relative of some sort. The grandkids would call my grandmother and tell her, "Mamie's mad and she's headed home. Watch for her."
So my grandparents would watch for Mamie and once she'd stomp by, they'd call the next relatives up the block and tell them, "Mamie's mad and she's headed home. Watch for her." And so it would go, block after block, until Mamie made it home, safely watched over by all her relatives all the way home, mad as hell, and with no idea that people were looking out for her every step of the way.
There's a lesson in there for all of us.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
3 comments:
yeah the lesson is "Don't invite Mamie over!"
hehe just kidding. But seriously, I lived with someone who's temper became increasingly out of control over the years, until I couldn't take it anymore. I don't mean 'bad temper', I mean Rage. Having a temper sucks, but its a blessing if you can control it.
cute story by the way
That's a really beautiful story. Thanks for sharing it.
Self-control is a dying art. I'm glad you and your family are keeping it alive. I believe in introspection and the self-control that stems from looking at yourself and where you can take back what you lose yourself in. Thanks for the story.
Post a Comment