Seasons Greenings

Sitting around the Thanksgiving table with Erin’s in-laws, we were having a lovely chat with one another, and I inquired after the latest comings and goings of a particular relative.  As my father was lifting a modest forkful of stuffing to his mouth, he casually provided, “She’s oiling animals at the local zoo.”  Here’s where you’re going to get a little insight into the Greene family: upon hearing that, none of us at the table thought this was incorrect or fallible intel; rather, we all fell to trying to picture in our heads what “oiling animals” meant.  And just as I was formulating a picture in my mind of an elephant on a pneumatic lift with my relative standing underneath, my mom added this point of clarification: “She’s bathing snakes and oiling lizards.”  Well, the elephant and the pneumatic lift were out with that little nugget, and our dinner conversation didn’t miss a beat.  Just like our lack of surprise or shock regarding that Thanksgiving revelation, you’ll read through this annual missive and not think twice about how weird we are, and I’m not quite sure if that says more about you than us. 

At the beginning of this year, Sam was living and working down in Viña Del Mar, Chile, as a missionary for our church before the ‘Rona hit.  In March, he and the entire gaggle of North American missionaries were flown back to the states to await reassignment, which came in April: Dallas, Texas.  Odd coincidence here: if you stood the Chilean flag next to the Texan flag, most people wouldn’t be able to tell you which was which.  Something tells me a lot more thought went into Sam’s reassignment location besides the flags’ similarities, but there you have it.  Because of quarantine, he was able to familiarize himself quite intimately with the inside of his apartment in the Dallas area, so if you know anyone who’s looking to relocate to the DFW Metroplex, Sam is uniquely qualified to tell them all about the pros and cons of his apartment’s interior.  Sam completed his mission in November and is currently preparing to start his freshman year in college in January. 

In early August, Jack packed up his life and moved to Utah to start an apprenticeship to become an electrician.  Yes, this is the same kid who would initiate a Harry Potter war by standing twenty paces apart from another person while both are holding Roman candles and firing them at one another – and now he’s being entrusted to wire up a 4 bed/2 bath single-family residence to ensure they have sufficient electricity being supplied safely to all corners of the home.  When Jack loaded up his truck for the move, he had one bag lightly packed with his clothes, a pillow, a blanket, and enough guns and ammo to supply a mid-sized militia.  Since he didn’t report an ambush in his journey up to Utah, I trust he still has his second-amendment-protected stockpile at the ready – in fact, I believe it has grown.  If you’re in the Provo area, give him a call – he’d love to take you out into the woods and stalk something. 

Amid the quarantine, Erin decided to get her real estate license.  All of her classes had to take place online via Zoom, and she came away from that experience with a burning question: were some of her classmates possessed of an overly high level of self-confidence, unaware that they could be seen by everyone else, or did they just not own a mirror?  Undaunted, Erin passed the test on her first try, and I’m happy to report that she has already sold two houses and has other items in the works – she’ll soon be selling so much real estate that I can retire from the mortgage business and pursue my true passion: pet grooming.  Lola, our dog, is going to look awesome with a Mohawk. 

Without a doubt, it’s been a weird year, and this report from the Greenes probably adequately punctuates that truth.  Many years ago, a friend of ours in southern California said, “Promise me, Grant, that you’ll write one of these every year, and you’ll always send me a copy.”  I don’t share that with you to pat myself on the back but to let you know there’s someone else to blame for all this.  If you want, I’ll give you his name and address.  In the meantime, be safe, be strong, and be well, folks!

Perspective

Things are slightly nuts right now, and that's probably an understatement depending on your current situation.  Whatever that situation may be, let me give you some perspective . . . but in reverse. 

Through the wonders of Facebook, when we're not reading about the latest (insert your favorite coronavirus-related rumor here), we have the ability to connect with the friends we've made over lo these many years and sort of keep track of one another.  Now, I want you take a moment and "review" your list of friends and look on them both as who they are now and who they were when you first met them.  Stay with me.

I have a friend on FB who regularly posts photos of the vegetables he's grown in his garden, and those photos usually have ten or twelve comments urging him on in his green thumb efforts.  If you met him today via one of his veggie photos, you'd feel fortunate you met him: he always has a positive outlook on life, and in those photos where he includes himself, he's always wearing a smile.  But when I met this guy, he was a punk.  No, I'm not saying that to paint him as a jerk who later reformed.  Literally, he was a punk rocker with the haircut and leather jacket - he was in a band whose logo he painted on the back of his leather jacket.  I'm fairly sure if you interviewed him back then and asked what he thought he would find joy in thirty years later, gardening would not be on the top ten list. 

Another friend is the lead singer of a country band that tours the nation.  The photos he posts show him singing at his various gigs and being with his band.  The guy I first met was on the border of shy; in a room full of people, he could sort of disappear in the crowd through his silence and conscious effort to avert all attention away from himself.  The man I first met and the man I see now on Facebook share similarities like they both have two arms and a head sitting on top of their shoulders, but that's about it. 

And I'm friends with a couple who have two beautiful children, and their photos and posts are devoted to being a family and the supreme joy they experience with one another.  When I first met them, they were just like that (only without the kids).  They were high school sweethearts, and they haven't changed a bit in personality or looks (he has less hair now but not much because he wore a flattop when I first met him).

There's nothing profound about this post.  It's just a reminder to look around you and see what has changed and what has stayed the same.  It'll be different for all of us, but it should give us the perspective to realize we have the power to be who we want to be regardless of who we were and the ability to maintain who we are even when life might try to make us to change: it's our choice.  Wherever you are in all that, choose to be your best.  Be well, my friends, and be good to each other.  The world's a little crazy; no need to add to it.