Monday Needs More Elbows

It's Sunday night, and I'm looking back again on a weekend that was all the things I love most - family, laughter, too much eating out, and all the time in the world to read and write.

And so I'm okay with the week ahead, the five days that earn the sixth and seventh, the ones I run through like the hare, toward a destination - instead of like the tortoise with time to watch the view. And because I've just watched the Truman Show in which a man discovers that if he breaks routine even the tiniest bit, all that's false around him falls apart and only the real remains, I'm thinking about breaking routine too.

Maybe I will eat lunch with my sister this week. She drove five hours to be near us all. Surely a long lunch won't take too much away from my race toward the weekend. Maybe I will take a walk instead of just saying I should. Maybe I'll eat cereal for supper.

Last week I went to a concert with Jake's preschool class. When I got there, they were singing Lean On Me. I love the sentiment of the song. I thrill to it. And now I thrilled to the brilliant echoes the song leader had designed for children. For, he sang. (FIVE, the children yelled). It won't be long (SHORT!) til I'm gonna need (ELBOW!) somebody to lean on."

Because need sounds kind of like knee", he told them, to explain that last one. Not that they cared. They probably would have yelled out persimmons if he had asked them to. And even if they hadn't been singing such a delightful song, even if I hadn't gotten a picture of them leaning on each other or if I hadn't marveled at the singer's ability to draw them in, I was so glad to be there. So glad to be shouting five instead of four for once and short instead of long. Monday through Friday needs more of that. It needs more elbows and more Lean on Me and more I wasn't supposed to be here but I am.

I just want to make sure I'm not living asleep Monday through Friday when breaking routine, even once, could be just the jarring I need to wake up.

Lean on Me