My son Ben has been amazing the last two days. He is only eleven and has had some ‘trouble’ with his tummy. Without dispelling too much of his personal information, I will just say that the doctor suggested he do a cleanse yesterday and today and only eat ‘things you can see through.’ He may not understand a lot of things, but he understood this for some reason and has not complained much at all.

At first, it was kind of a treat. When I told him he would have to take some medicine he didn’t seem overly concerned. Especially since the next thing I told him was that he was going to have to eat Jello-O and gatorade for the two days. Jello-O isn’t something I make very often (horse hooves) so, it is a bit of a treat. He was pretty excited about his diet restrictions.

He made it until today before telling me he didn’t care if I ever made Jello-O again in his life. He also started begging me for anything that had chicken in it. Apparently, chicken broth is not enough to satisfy his craving for chicken. Seriously, when I take the kids out for ice cream and ask him what kind he wants, he usually asks if he can have chicken instead. Go figure!

At first, I thought I would just do the diet with Ben to make it easier for him, and to help me have a better understanding of what he was going through. It was a good plan….that fell flat on it’s face in the mud. I made it about half way through the day yesterday before I started feeling like my blood sugar had plummeted through the ground into a sink hole. I had absolutely NO energy. I totally caved. I guess I’m a total wimp. Of course, the fact that I started my period later that day could prove to be my face-saving excuse….I’ll take it!

Watching Ben troop through his diet while I failed miserably made me think about how little we are alike as people. Everyone is so very different. At the same time….we are all very similar. That may sound like a riddle, but I will explain if I can. What I mean is that no one can truly understand what another person is feeling, but at the same time, we all feel our own sorrow, joy, grief, pain, etc. No one is without those feelings in some part of their life. We all have to deal with that stuff….yet we can never truly know how another person feels.

It really makes me think about my responsibility to my fellow man. I really do have a great responsibility as we all do, to try and be a bit less judgmental and bit more supportive to the people around us.

I am a beta reader for a writer friend of mine. I am about half way done with her book and it is really a great story. I have become completely submerged in it. The book talks a bit about looking outward instead of inward. We all have our own sorrows, but when we look for other people to help and serve, our own troubles grow a bit dimmer. I had forgotten how much whatever I am reading affects my mood and my day while I am reading. I think the timing of this book is great. It is helping me be a bit more patient with Ben as well as my other family members.

I think her book has a fantastic message and hope she gets it published. You know I’ll be promoting it here! Cause I said so.

Photo credit: http://ramshackleglam.tumblr.com/post/1210211019/fun-with-jell-o-jell-o-is-always-fun