Impact

     I hate the catsup bottle turned upside, same with the BBQ sauce bottle...but if it's almost empty I'll flip them to get the most out.  I like making plans, but if opportunity arises, I'll take it.  Sometimes, it's better to just sit back and listen even if I want to speak my peace.  So now, sometimes...'When my little girl has to write a story about a picture she has that made her smile and she picks one where she is turned upside down,' I just smile and shake my head.  A random loud burp, singing country at the top of her lungs in true country twang, picking on me for short hair...it's all my little girl, but she's with an impact.
     We've both changed in the past year and have added a bit to our list of 'who we are' and that other list of 'what we do'.  Either way, we were impacted by our new little past in ways I never could have imagined. I hardly ever roll my eyes anymore and I miss that, but I don't miss the ear plugs.  I found about 10 of them the other day rolling around in a top drawer and found myself smiling that half smile; thinking oh thank goodness I don't need those and yet thinking awww I don't need those.  What a topsy turvy thought rolling through.
      Each moment has an impact on the future; at the time I had no idea just how it would be today.  Oh the stories I have heard repeated, similar to those stories from the past, the ones shared over and over to keep a memory fresh that can never be replaced by a newer memory.  The choice I made to keep my heart protected inevitably involves little Lou and starts her new past stories a fresh.
No matter, I'm thankful for the time shared, for what I've learned, the smiles I've made and the tears I've cried.  In my eyes it was all good, because it's better to remember the good and laugh of the silly and forget the rest.