WILL I BE NORMAL WHEN I GROW UP?

A few years ago, Junior posed this question to me, "Mom, when I grow up, will I be normal?"

Now this is coming from a kid who rarely wears matching clothes, usually looks like he just rolled around in a plate of spaghetti, and gets tripped up by the lines in our sidewalk.  You tell me.  Will this kid grow up normal?  The verdict is still out...

I remember when he asked this question, a couple of thoughts popped into my mind, "What makes him think he's NOT normal?"  or "What is he noticing in our family that makes him concerned he doesn't have a chance at being normal?"  (Because, if you know our family, the kid has the deck stacked against him in BOTH arenas...)

Answer me this though....what IS normal?

I have to revert back to some wise words by the mother of a good friend of mine.  She once said, "Everybody is weird...it's just how well they hide it!"  Truer words were never spoken.  Don't we all hide something?  I know I do daily!!  When someone says, "How are you doing today?"  I always reply with, "Great! How are you?"  But deep down in the dark corners of my soul what I really want to say is "Well, my stove needs a repair I can't afford, I got a speeding ticket earlier this morning I'm scared to tell my husband about, I've gained 15 pounds since the last time I wore these jeans and if I don't get to a bathroom soon you're going to have a puddle on the floor.  How's your day?!"

Don't you have days like this?  What you WANT to say is nothing close to what you ACTUALLY say, but because none of us want to get hauled off to the mental ward we keep it tucked inside.

Is THAT normal?

(These are the questions I ponder in those 3 seconds I have alone with my thoughts before I pass out exhausted at night into my pillow...)

Typically, we hold in our freak-of-nature-side to the public and reveal it only for our family and maybe some very very very close friends.  But it doesn't stop there for me!  Though I think I can fool the world with my wardrobe selection, I do anything I can to hide my hips and thighs.  In certain social circles, I refrain from admitting how much I love "boring" documentaries on history and science and I rarely admit to others (at least upon first meeting them) that I am an only child for fear they will judge me as nerdy or spoiled.

Look at me trying to achieve what I see as being "normal."

So if my kids watch me doing this, should I expect any less from them? What I have come to find with Junior is he has trouble hiding things.  He is a very honest child....like make-your-jaw-drop-honest.  There isn't a thought that goes through his head that doesn't come out his mouth.  He wears what he likes no matter if there are holes or stains on it.  (He is also rarely bound by color coordination...)  He is content to be involved in an activity he enjoys no matter what his friends are doing around him.  So, when he asks questions like this, though part of me laughs, I have to wonder if he senses he is transparent almost to fault and this quality could make him be "not normal."

My oldest son, PW is also "not normal"...though he craves it. He wants so badly to be like other kids in his class.  Though I tell him his friends are all worried about the same thing he is -- trying to fit in -- he is sure HE is the odd man out.  I remind him he is "fearfully and wonderfully made"(Ps 139:14) but since he is hitting his "tween" years he is very aware of his differences. Yet take a gander at how my kid is different.  At 11 years old, he is a prayer warrior for his friends and family.  This kid prays for so many at night before bed and he never leaves anyone off his list.  He truly believes in the power of prayer.  Is that normal for an 11 year old?  I doubt it!  I hope and pray he stays as "un-normal" as possible with traits like this!!

I love the fact that my kids are different.  How boring would our world be if we were all alike?  I loved all the different personalities of my students in the classroom every year I taught school.  Each one added an element of uniqueness simply by being present!! Frustrating, sometimes, yes.  Entertaining?  Fun?  Loving?  Absolutely! Life in the classroom was made better BECAUSE they were different, not in spite of it! This is how God meant it to be!

I have two strange little boys.  They are quirky, they make tons of mistakes, they say things that aren't socially acceptable and they act in ways they shouldn't for their age -- and I love it.  Will Junior be normal when he grows up?  Doubtful.  Neither will PW.  And this Momma is just fine with that!

How weird are your kids?  I would love to hear!! Please share!!