Speak to me like you are Barry White. Please.

If you’re going to ask me about all we’ve got going on this week and next, speak to me like you are Barry White. This week, I’ve had to ask loved ones to stop talking to me like this: “OH NO!! ARE YOU OKAY???” and “HOW ARE YOU GETTING THROUGH THIS??I’D BE FREAKING OUT!! I’D DIE! I COULDN’T HANDLE IT!!!” I have told those beloved people that I can’t listen to questions like that unless they are asked slow…and low. Lots of pauses. No shrieking. No loud voices. No hysterical giggling, just gentle murmers while stroking my arm if I’m not holding coffee.

I understand. We have a lot going on as a family right now. Three of us are moving to Ottawa. One of us is flying to Costa Rica for four months. In the last two weeks we’ve sold a house, bought a house, registered a kid in a new high school, figured out details for our traveller, I’ve spent a week in New York City for my master’s, and this week alone we have activities almost every night.

I’ve realized that when you feel like a sheet of glass that could shatter any moment, with just the right amount of pressure, a Barry White voice is the only answer. When asking questions of someone in the middle of Big Stuff, go slow and go low.  If you need a reminder, here it is.