Too Much Noise

In my youth, one of my favorite pastimes was riding my bike. I would put on my Walkman, pop in my cassette tape of the Chipmunks singing "What's New Pussycat?", "Downtown", and several other songs that were even then, "oldies but goodies." Then, I rode in circles around my driveway for hours, usually with a Cabbage Patch kid in the "baby" seat attached to the rear of my bike and unabashedly irritating my older brother who was trying to shoot hoops in that same driveway. 

When I read this week's Finish the Sentence Friday prompt, "When it comes to more youthful days . . . . ", that's the scene that topped into my mind. A picture of simpler times when life was uncomplicated. That kid-version of me on the bike had few worries in the world and all she needed was a bike, some music, and a little sunshine to bring her joy. The memory transported me to a place that, for just a moment, felt so much lighter and more carefree than my adult reality.

After I thought about that scene for a minute, I continued to scroll through my Facebook feed (where I saw the prompt to begin with) and that carefree feeling quickly disappeared. 

"Mass Shooting" wasn't even in the vocabulary of 8 year old me, but, now, I know exactly what it means. I know that tragedy like that brings out the best in some people and the worst in others. It becomes a platform for more arguing and extreme points of view - more gun control or not; gay rights vs.homophobia- which all eventually turns into Trump is awful and Hilary is terrible.  

Then there are the other headlines. Teenagers dying. Children, literally, swallowed by alligators. People debating which life is more precious - a human child or an endangered animal. Celebrities chastised for being too fat or too old or too not-good-enough-in-some-other-way. 

So much sadness. So much arguing. So much judgement. 

I scan the headlines and think to my 39 year old self, "When did this become our world??"

The truth is that there have always been bad things happening, but there was no Facebook, Twitter, or internet to give us all the gory details instantaneously and give us all a platform for "public" arguing, boisterously imposing our own opinions on others, and levying harsh judgement on anyone who takes a different stance. 

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It's no secret that I've struggled with my writing/blogging over the past several months and, when I started this post, I had no idea where I was going with it. I just read a prompt, saw an image in my mind, and tried to let the writing lead me for a change.

As I typed the words, I heard some other words playing in the background.

"We didn't turn it on but we can't turn it off, off, off.

Sometimes, I wonder how did we get here.

Seems like all we ever hear is 

NOISE . . . 

24 hour television, gets so loud that no one listens
Sex and money and politicians talk, talk, talk
But there really ain't no conversation
Ain't nothing left to the imagination
Trapped in our phones and we can't make it stop, stop this noise"

It's a song by Kenny Chesney and was exactly what I needed to hear at that moment. 

Sometimes, I get so tired of all the "noise" that it makes my head spin and my heart hurt just thinking about the world my daughters will inherit. All of these opinions and judgments; all of this ignorance and hate; all of this "NOISE" about who is right and who is wrong; tragedy and sadness; judgment and hate. 

Like anyone else, I certainly have my own thoughts and viewpoints. Mine are, typically, more on the conservative side than what I hear from most people around me. Most of the time, I choose to keep them to myself - not because I'm afraid of backlash or criticism; not because I doubt myself or fear I will offend others. I keep them to myself because there is already too much "noise" and I don't want to add to the pollution.

At the end of the day, we are all just human and none of us are perfect - far, far from it. We all have crosses to bear, ideas to share, and feelings to feel.

I wish there was just more respect and understanding and a whole lot less sadness and  noise. 

If only I could go back to the days of my youth when I was naive and the world seemed simple. I'd hop on my bike, slap on that Walkman, and just drown out all the other noise. 

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Finish The Sentence Friday is hosted by Kristi of Finding Ninee. 

IT'S ALIVE!!!!!

Photo Credit

No - Not that!

THIS!!!

I teased you on Monday with my Big News and told you it was "Coming Soon."  Well, soon has arrived!  You can get your copy right now!  It is available in print or Kindle version through Amazon!  Just click HERE or on that pretty button over there on my sidebar!

Get your copy today!  While you're at it, why not get a few copies for friends, too?!?  (Remember, the holidays are just around the corner!)!  I promise you will love it!

Big News!!

Have you ever had a meltdown??  An adult temper tantrum??  Well, I have!  So have 29 other blogger moms I know!  Very soon, we are going to be sharing our stories with all of you in this book!


The Mother of All Meltdowns is an anthology of thirty stories in which we are sharing with you some of our best, worst, saddest, and funniest mommy meltdowns.   It is for every mother, grandmother, and caregiver who has ever just lost it!  From the labor and delivery room to the airport to the DMV, you will laugh, you will cry, and, most of all, you will nod you head in complete agreement!


Here is what the Dose Girls, Ashley and Lisa, have to say about the book:

Do you ever find yourself wondering if you are the only one who doesn't react to all situations like June Cleaver? Are there days as a mother where you wish *you* could throw yourself to the ground and have a toddler-style tantrum because you.just.can't.take.it.anymore? Well, so have the 30 hilarious bloggers of "The Mother of All Meltdowns"! These ladies tell it like it is.

Gone bonkers because your child didn't appreciate the expensive, theme park vacation you booked to make their childhood complete?
Check.
Lost your cool because your child decided to play barbershop using her own head?
Yep, they have been there.
Ever punish your child for not eating the lunch you accidentally forgot to make him?
They feel your pain.

We could not have enjoyed "The Mother of All Meltdowns" more...partly because we laughed so hard while reading, we could legitimately skip our ab workout for the week! Score! Every mom reading will come away feeling like she has 30 new girlfriends who just "get it"! All moms deserve the laughter and validation "The Mother of All Meltdowns" delivers!

Lisa and Ashley (a.k.a. The Dose Girls, The Dose of Reality.com)

I am so incredibly excited about this project and cannot wait to share it with everyone!!  It will be released in ebook and print very soon!!  You can be sure that I will keep you up to date here on the blog as well as on Facebook and Twitter.  

You can also follow The Mother of All Meltdwons on Facebook and Twitter.  AND, check out the the book's WEBSITE  where you can see a list of all thirty authors and read the blog where we are sharing even more moments of maddness!!!