Password

being a fanatical gameboard player, i have enjoyed our 'password marathon' with donna and her sister faye. not only are we excellent players (?), but we laugh ourselves silly as we attempt to find the perfect clue to score a point.  some of the most difficult words to guess are the shortest words.  for instance, the word 'kind' was never guessed.  it yielded longer words such as 'compassion'.  i won't even address the guesses that the word 'tow' elicited.

two things come to mind as i think about our games:

1. belly laughs are important.  they suspend the concerns about the past and future and keep the laughers squarely in the present.  plus, they make the body feel really good apart from the 'ache' in the stomach.  all three of us had to 'hold our stomachs' to contain the laughter we were experiencing.

2.  sometimes the most simple solutions can be overlooked in the attempt to look for something more complex.  sophisticated answers, although important at times, cannot take the place of common sense.

learning to replace stress and complexity with relaxation and more common thinking is one of the benefits of retirement.  my body and mind as been so used to the 'race race' it takes time to fall into a more sane lifestyle.  similar to finishing graduate school, i am getting trying to get used to the lack of schedules, deadlines, and constant obligations.  withdrawal symptoms in the form of anxiety and confusion can get in the way of enjoying the present. 

a part of this transition is allowing time to adjust to this huge transition. the simple solution is  to remind myself that life is different and i am/will be just fine.