Pony

When I was a kid and would whine, my parents told a predictable story as a response. 

There were two kids and one was put in a room with a bunch of toys and the other in a room full of manure. When the researcher returned, the kid in the toy room was whining about being bored and how there was nothing to do. When the researcher came to the door of the room full of manure, he could hear giggling and hurrahs. As he opened the door, the kid was covered in poop digging away happily. The fellow asked her why she was so happy and the child said, "With all this shit, there has to be a pony in here somewhere." 

This was supposed to illustrate the difference between a pessimist and an optimist, not good childcare skills or appropriate language. I'm not sure it really demonstrates the difference between them or if that difference is all that interesting; I do think it is a story that set me up to keep digging and looking for adventure. 

One of the greatest gifts I was given growing up was the lack of expectation that anyone would entertain me. There was never a sense that life would come to me for my pleasure, but I had hours of wandering my grandparent's fields or barns looking for adventure or trouble. I rode my bike hundreds of miles and dug in the dirt looking for arrowheads or bones. 

It would be easy to jump into a critique of the newest generation and all their gadgets, but I find them as creative as any other generation. We've all tended to get a little lazy when it comes to entertainment recently, but I'm trying to keep myself awake on another gray day when the wind, rain, and dark feel like a room full of shit. 

So I've decided to clean out all my files. 

Wow. It doesn't get much more fun than that. 

That was sarcasm, except it has been an experience full ponies. I found old birthday cards, memories of our first dog, and our visas for studying in Tanzania. Cleaning is never my favorite thing and I took double Vitamin D today, but what a delightful surprise to find treasures where I only expected tedium. 

Keep digging even when it feels like a room full of shit - that's the lesson of my childhood. I'd add permission to take a nap and come back to it, but please keep getting out of bed and showing up to life.