Going Somewhere Deeper

Today while I was at the University of Oprah (held on my comfy bean bag) today, I learned something from Professor Jim Carey. He was talking about his girlfriend's autistic son, and how because he couldn't get the kind of interaction from the kid that he was used to getting from kids, and because the kid wasn't (outwardly at least) loving him to death, he learned that to really love a person is to be there for them unconditionally, regardless of what you're getting out of it. He said it's about going somewhere deeper. Deep, Jimmy, deep.

So how can I apply Professor Carey's instruction to my life? I'm not sure. But I can tell you how other people can apply it.

People with kids should recognize that loving your kids the best you can isn't about how much they adore you. It's about raising them not to be brats, and to say please and thank you, and to be polite, and not to steal, and not to pick their noses. So if they pitch a fit and throw a tantrum and tell you they hate you or that you need to go have a time out, you should lovingly tell them to go to their room. Or at the very least, lovingly not give them what they think they can get by acting like a brat.

People with friends should do nice things for their friends, like pick them up from the airport, make them cookies, take them soup when they are sick, and leave notes on their milk cartons, and they shouldn't just do it to prove what a good friend they are. Also, they should listen to their friends when they have problems, and be there for them, instead of being all know-it-all-ish and try to solve their problems.

Since I have totally mastered both of these areas, I am happy to offer advice. Especially to people with kids. I'm so set in that area. I guess I'm just ahead of the curve like that. Just like I knew how to drive a car even before I'd ever been in one. I'm amazing like that.

Also, when you feel it, you heal it. Jimmy said so.