Smile and Wave

I haven't written much lately and I'm feeling the loss. I've been feeling so fragmented lately though from lots of different work things and a lot of people time. Some of these folks are going through hard times too. A friend told me that when she visits her grandmother in the nursing home her son walks in saying, 'smile and wave, boys, smile and wave.' Her boys are a riot and I love that they realize at a young age that many of these seniors brighten at the sight of boys with big grins. But the words took on a different meaning for me. I'm an extrovert - no doubt about that - but when I spend a lot of time with lots of people I start to feel like there is nothing holding me together at the core. And then I don't feel like I'm always present to people. Life becomes a bit of 'smile and wave boys.' Reading week has begun though and I'm looking forward to some quiet time working at home to catch up on admin work and get my lenten prep done. I was away ten days ago at a conference and I haven't finished unpacking yet so I'm hoping to get that done too. There will be time spent with folks in my week too but I'm hoping that after some time putzing in my house I won't be just smiling and waving.