Thanksgiving Week Confessions: The Bedside Comedian

I'm going to post my Thanksgiving Confessions again this year. Read last year's here.

Imagine a girl and her Texas Grandmother spending quality time together and filling two shopping carts with all the joys of Thanksgiving festivities. They’re laughing at the check-out and planning the meal ahead. And then it ends with the grandmother falling face-first into the cement. Pretty much a holiday nightmare. Complete with the girl having to call 911.

First, let me give a thankfulness shout-out to the City of Park Ridge who had an ambulance to us within 56 seconds. My mom pays 10x the property taxes I pay, but it seems worth it for days like yesterday.

My grandmother’s in the hospital (doing okay, running some further tests). Unfortunately, I’m not unfamiliar with being at a family member’s hospital bedside. Sometimes, I try to act like my mom and help the patient calm down and be at peace- but that’s her role. And sometimes, I try to say some nice spiritual things like Philo, our sister from India (literally, she’s a nun- I promise to blog about her later), but she’s actually the hospital chaplain as well, so it’s better left to her.

So my role? I’m the comedian. It’s not constant hysteria, but bed-side-notes of humor. Who else was going to tell my grandma that the neck brace she was wearing had given her an instant face-lift? And, who is there to joke with her about how they always ask the hardest questions when you have a head injury? Come on, doesn’t everyone already stumble over the question, “What day of the week is it?” Even without a head injury? Can’t we make these questions easier, people?

I think I made her rough night a little easier (I rubbed her head, too- that’s better than comedy, usually). And it got me thinking about living an authentic life in all circumstances. It’s so much more rewarding to all involved when I am ME. Even in a hospital room. I confess that oftentimes I try to fit the mold of what I think others need/want from me. I try to be the whisper of peace, the chaplain, the intelligent one, the pretty one, the team leader and more. I love integrating how others see and respond to the world, but in the end, I’ve got to be the person God made me to be.

P.S. I’m pretty sure He laughs at some of my jokes.

Posted in: Family,Holidays