Expecting Adam

I just finished the book Expecting Adam by Martha Beck, which was loaned to me by the amazing Annie H., and I loooooooved it. Therefore I would like to document some of my favorite quotes and sentiments.



"What they did not realize is that they themselves were the ones who would be 'born', infants in a new world where magic is commonplace, Harvard professors are the slow learners, and retarded babies are the master teachers."
This is basically what the book is about: how her son with down syndrome taught her things that she never could have learned in her PhD program at Harvard. Love it.

"You'll never be hurt as much by being open as you have been hurt by remaining closed."
Truth. I don't feel like I struggle in being open with anyone and everyone, except when it comes to the thoughts, feelings, or ideas that portray my absolute weakness. Call me prideful, I will agree with you. I struggle with being portrayed as weak, I think because of things that happened during my childhood that required me to be the strong one in my family when everyone else fell apart. So, I don't like crying and rarely do it, I don't like asking for help, and it is not a good thing, which I why I LOVED this quote. I hope that as I accept this weakness, of trying not to be weak, that I can let myself just fall to pieces every once and awhile and that I can let someone help me pick up those pieces.

"The real magic doesn't come from achieving the perfect appearance, from being Cinderella at the ball with both glass slippers and a killer hairstyle. The real magic is in the pumpkin, in the mice, in the moonlight; not beyond ordinary life, but within it."

"This is the part of us that makes our brief, improbable little lives worth living: the ability to reach through our own isolation and find strength, and comfort, and warmth for and in each other. This is what human beings do. This is what we live for, the way horses live to run."

"Whoever said that love is blind was dead wrong. Love is the only thing on this earth that lets us see each other with the remotest accuracy."
In another part of the book she talks about how she did a mini experiment and tried for one day to look at her classmates without any preconceptions and without trying to label them. She said that this only lasted for a few moments because she couldn't stopped her eyes from filling with tears as she looked at each classmate. She goes on to say that, "if we saw people as they really are, the beauty would overwhelm us."


What a great book! This is why I love reading, because it gives me the opportunity to be introspective, no matter what kind of book it is, I get to put myself unfamiliar situations and analyze my own internal reactions and beliefs. This one gave me the chance to really think about what I would do if I had a child with a disability. How would I react? How would my plans change? What things might I be taught? I don't know what kind of children Heavenly Father will send me in the future, but I can say that this book made me excited to meet them, regardless of what challenges they will face, I know that they will be my greatest teachers.

Thanks Annie for the good read. What shall I read next? :) Anything to keep me distracted from my textbooks!

Observations

Throughout the week as I go about my classes, work, etc. I have had the opportunity to make many many many observations about the world around me, the people I associate with, and about myself in general. It is so fun! Here are a few of those observations, mixed in with some random funny things that have happened this week.

1. The world teaches us that we should focus on the negative, the Gospel teaches us to focus on the positive.
In my favorite class, the same one where we made the joy lists, our teacher asked us as a class to name one good attribute about ourselves and how that trait helps us to find joy. My class is usually pretty talkative but no one said anything. I looked at my classmates and it seemed as if they were searching within themselves yet struggling to come up with anything good they had to offer. My teacher finally said that we all have good traits and that she wanted to hear them already. Still, no one said anything. Eventually I raised my hand and said, "I don't get angry very often or easily. I am not offended easily and I focus on the bigger picture instead of the small trials I have everyday. That helps me to have a positive outlook and remain happy." I figured after I spoke that my classmates might have gained the courage to speak up but still, no one said anything! So, my teacher ended up calling each of them one by one, and it was almost like pulling teeth. This made me so sad! I am so grateful for the knowledge that I have, because of the gospel, that I am a Daughter of God and that means that I have been blessed with certain character traits that will help me return to Him after this life. I really wish that every one of my classmates knew and understood that.


2. "This conjugation is the past, this is more in the past, and this is like the pastest that you can go." SPA 412 Profesora

3. Don't text in class. Your teacher will write down your name on her roster and take away your participation points for the day. :( Dumb.

4. The high five is more complex than you think. I sit next to this girl, who I like to call Cousin, in my BLE220 class and I just so happened to have trained her at In-N-Out when I was All-Starring at the Signal Butte Store like 3 years ago. Anyways, we analyzed the high, middle and low fives and this is what we came up with.
High Five: power, triumph, encouragement, just pure awesomeness shared between two people with hands.
Low Five: secret accomplishment between the two, celebration of a triumph in front of a bunch of losers that you don't want them to see.
Middle Five: Borderline patty-cake. Don't do it. Ever.

5. "Un beso para ti" My profesor for SPA473 asked what the Mexican equivalent to indian fry bread is and I said buñuelos and he then shouted this quote, which means, "a kiss for you!" and blew me a kiss. He is like 80. The whole class basically broke out into hysterics after this one.