Annette Petrick

Southern Touch

Backstory

I have a dear friend who grew up in and now lives again in Mobile, Alabama. To me, she is the epitome of southern charm. I’ve learned a lot from her, including how to gush over gifts received and make a person feel really special. Imo inspired this story.

Southern Touch

I was originally from Pennsylvania; then New Jersey. After 40 years or so, I wound up being a resident of Virginia. I became a southerner.

As such, I latched on to one of the finest southern phrases = Y’all.

Good morning, y’all. Have y’all heard the news? Let’s go to y’all’s house.

Oh, I just love to use that phrase. It is so much more gentile than the plural of y-o-u that we used in coal country – Yous ready to go? What are yous doing? Uh. No finesse.

Of course, when I added that southern phrase to my northern accent, I got mixed reactions. But it worked so well, I even started using it when I put things in writing. You just might get an email from me with “Y’all” in it. Or it might be in a Christmas card. Or even a radio show.

Now if you really want to appreciate Southern Belle language, ask me about the story behind the southern phrase, “That’s nice.” Or the popular – “Bless his heart.” Adding that phrase to it allows you to take virtually any verbal insult, and repeat it in polite company – “He was such a twit, bless his heart.”

So y’all take a lesson from this southern yarn, y’hear? You can get away with saying ANYTHING as long as it’s said with a smile and a southern drawl.

Annette Petrick for Consider This, y’all.

P.S. My friend Imo could always make you feel special. That was the most endearing part of her southern charm.

[Show #379]

Train That Left the Station

Backstory

Sometimes love occurs at first sight. For others, patience is required as you move through life, happy and fulfilled, with just that one thing missing. He said he sought a life partner with depth, who was smart, caring and kind. Did she need to make a mean lasagna besides?

Train that left the Station

He had been a bachelor for more than 60 years. He was attractive, intelligent, financially secure, funny, interesting. He was what would be considered quite a catch for a woman of his day. He had a full and successful life with a career in a field he loved, lots of friends and loving family.

And yet romance had alluded him. He never found the time . . . or took the time . . . to look past the casual, to find a woman who could hold his attention and fill the void. After so many decades of a solitary life, he explained, he assumed that train had left the station. Fatherhood was not to be. Intimacy was not to be experienced.

And then she came into his life. Bustling and busy, bright and joyful. They became friends and enjoyed spending time together. They started doing for each other, and going places together. They started dating. And it all fell together so naturally, so happily.

A couple of years and they realized they wanted more and they got engaged. They’re now approaching 3,000 days together. He’s counted them.

How do I know? I am the train that pulled into his station. Big red caboose and all.

P.S. Sequestering during the pandemic added a new 24/7 dimension to our togetherness. Our train just chugged on through and out the other side. Now all we seek is just one more day. And then one more and perhaps another . . . And give thanks on every one of those days.

[Show #629]

Digital Stories

Backstory

Storytelling describes the social and cultural activity of sharing stories, sometimes with improvisation, theatrics or embellishment. Every culture has its own stories or narratives, which are shared as a means of entertainment, education, cultural preservation or instilling moral values. Wikipedia

Digital Stories

As a follower of Consider This, you are obviously a person who loves stories. I too am a story reader, as well as a story teller.

I really appreciate stories told in few words. Like this one – After I watched my dog get run over by a car, I sat on the side of the road holding him and crying. Just before he died, he licked the tears off my face.

What a tale of loyalty and love was told in those three short sentences.

Here’s another –As my father, three brothers, and two sisters stood around her hospital bed, my mother uttered her last coherent words before she died. She simply said, “I feel so loved right now.We should have gotten together like this more often.” How poignant.

There’s an interesting source of stories online that you might like. It’s called Cowbird. Yep, weird name, but that’s where you’ll find it on the Internet – Cowbird.

It’s a digital public library of human experience. My stories are read and heard there, along with thousands of authors from 185 countries. It’s a veritable storyland of imagination and emotion. You can choose stories by keyword, location, author’s name. Give it a try – c-o-w-b-i-r-d.com.

P.S.

Hats off to my fellow storytellers in Tale Tellers of St Augustine https://www.taletellers.org/ and Virginia Storytelling Alliance https://virginiastorytellingalliance.org/. Enjoy our performances all year round.

[Show #613]

Fog

Backstory

It’s a foggy morning here in the Shenandoah Valley. The vapor moves slowly along; hiding from view, everything over 10 feet away. It’s early morning and very quiet. What a wonderful time for wondering, daydreaming, allowing random thoughts to flutter across the busy landscape of my mind and take their own detours, left and right.

I sat here for quite a while, doing just that. Torn between getting the words down on paper – or just letting them glide in and out, unattended and undirected.

Most of the thoughts were quite elusive. I felt naughty, allowing them to swirl around so. I am usually disciplined about getting them down on paper. But they came and went like dry fallen leaves, on the rush of a nor-easter.

It took major concentration to finally come down and reconnect with reality. Once I did, this is the episode that came “Out of the Fog.”

Out of the Fog

The mountains have disappeared. Often, they simply turn blue with the weather. Today, they are invisible; masked by the early morning fog.

I feel alone in this temporary setting, shielded from anything that is not in my heart and mind this morning. I have the freedom to think any kind of thoughts.

I can worry about the world . . . or think happy thoughts. I can review my responsibilities . . . pay my bills . . . visit FaceBook friends.

Instead, I think I will sit here quietly. Just you and me. I’ll think about how grateful I am that you stop in – some, once in a while, some, every Sunday.

I love to share with you thoughts and stories and laughs. I like to pass along reminders of the good things we have to hold on to. Often reminders about being thankful, and expressing that thanks. Reminders about the love that surrounds you. Maybe a little nudge about reaching out or speaking up – or keeping quiet.

So many thoughts to share . . . So many stories to tell.

Thank you for spending these 90 seconds with me. Even if your day starts with fog, like mine did, may it end, with hope.

P.S.

Now that we are out of lock-down and into more pre-pandemic rhythm, don’t become so caught up with “hurry” that you forget time out. Continue to leave space for contemplation. And above all, be kind.

[Show #622]

The Distant Grandma

Backstory

Today’s grandmothers are on the go and may still be employed. They are just not available as they were when everyone lived nearby. Technology claims to be an answer for keeping in-touch – except for those of us who can’t remember their password, let alone install and operate apps on our tablet or watch.

When it comes to the gizmos and gadgets and digital equipment with which the kids are obsessed, grandparents are often left in the dust. We need wisdom, creativity and a slice of entrepreneurship to create effective intergenerational communication in this day and age.

The Distant Grandma

The role of grandmother can be challenging when distance separates generations.

In my childhood, most grandmothers lived within walking distance or were at least a short ride away. Not so today. So how does a grandmother get to know and enjoy her children’s children?

One Nanny has grand-kids who live about an hour’s drive away. She prepares dinner each Tuesday and totes it to their home, where she and the family share the meal. Then mom and dad have a night out while she spends time getting updated on the grand-kids’ lives.

Other grandmothers have turned to Skype. They may have scheduled weekly electronic visits or the grand-kids may dial up whenever they have something special to share. It’s a wonderful opportunity to watch babies blossom, week by week.

One grandma who is also the family genealogist takes a batch of old photos with her when she visits, and tells stories of earlier generations, how they got to America and how they prospered or struggled. She is also the unofficial custodian of the family heritage, sharing songs, costumes and history of the land of their ancestors.

If you are a grandmother, what do you do to stay in touch with busy grand-kids? Let us know, and we’ll share your ideas in a future show. Send your thoughts to Annette@considerthisradioshow.com, or respond on our website.

P.S.

Great resource for grandparenting – GRAND magazine helps provide solutions to the many challenges of being a grandparent in today’s tech-savvy world. Also recognizes that we are not ‘just’ grandparents. We are multifaceted human beings with many passions and interests, transitioning through life stages. GRAND sometimes features grandparent-themed stories from Consider This. Subscribe free. https://www.grandmagazine.com/

[Show #624]

Smile

Backstory

My mother used to urge me to smile more often. Seems I was a rather sullen pre-teen whose expression was too often a scowl. Turns out that I needed glasses. Once I could see well, there was so much beauty and joy around me, it was impossible not to smile.

I later passed the smile advice on to my daughter. She was a very serious teenager whose frequent frown made her look downbeat. She took the advice and her demeanor changed dramatically.

When she started climbing her career ladder, she discovered the power of a smile in business dealings. The division she headed was comprised mostly of people older and (she seemed to suggest) wiser than she. I advised that positive responses come more often when bad news or corrections are delivered with a smile. She’s been enjoying smiling success for years.

Who Makes You Smile

Is there a person in your life who can always make you smile? Someone who seems to be able to brighten the darkest day . . . find hope in the most confusing situation?

What a gift it is when we have someone like that. It could be a spouse . . . a sister or brother . . . a friend or even a co-worker. I hope you get to be in their company often.

I wonder if the person who makes you smile knows that she or he has that talent. Do you think they set out to brighten people’s days? or do they just do it naturally, just by being themselves.

What would it take to become one of those people?

The first thing, I suppose, is the smile. The smile has to come naturally and be real. There’s nothing worse than a smile that beams one moment and extinguishes or becomes a frown in the next. So the smile has to be sincere.

And the desire to be kind and help has to be innate. That doesn’t sound so hard. Why not give it a try?

Do two things.

That person who makes you smile – let them know. It will mean a lot for them to get that feedback
Follow their lead and become a person who makes others smile

Hey – you just made the world a better place!

P.S.

So we’ve been smile advocates in my family for a long time. You?

[Show #628]