Our longtime friend Sonya is an amazing 8th grade English teacher at a middle school in Northwest Oklahoma. She is clever, witty, and highly qualified to teach English. Most importantly she loves kids. But…I don’t envy the student who chooses to be a discipline problem in her class. I suspect Alcatraz would be appealing to such a pupil before it was all over. Sonya will be a teacher they will never forget. I have told Jan for years that Sonya actually missed her true calling in life.

Do you remember columnist Erma Bombeck? Erma wrote a syndicated column several times a week that many major newspapers carried. Her column was akin to blogging before that term was a part of our everyday vocabulary. One source states: From 1965 to 1996, Erma Bombeck wrote over 4,000 newspaper columns chronicling the ordinary life of a midwestern suburban housewife with broad, and sometimes eloquent, humor. She also published 15 books over the course of her career. Erma Bombeck was funny, because she took real life situations and put a humorous spin on each of them. In my opinion, Sonya’s wit outdoes even Erma Bombeck. She also has the writing skills to accompany that quick thinking.
Here is Sonya’s latest quip that I read on facebook earlier this week:
I have a SEVERE case of I-Don’t-Wanna-Do-Anything. Symptoms include, but are not limited to: lethargy, laziness, fatigue, boredom (it’s not like I have NOTHING to do!), melancholy, minor drooling, glazed-over eyes, & other unmotivated-like issues. I feel guilty because I planned to accomplish so much over the break. Think I’ll just lie down on the couch for a bit and contemplate my next move…or at least I’ll lie down…

You can learn a lot through humorous quips. I laughed at her status update, because I know that Sonya is normally focused, organized, and on top of everything that needs to be accomplished. After I laughed, I realized that most of us need lessons in learning to chill out. We need to learn how to truly rest. The principle of Sabbath that is stressed in Scripture evades us. We are always on the go. Our vacations look more like Chevy Chase’s trek to Wally World than an experience in rest and relaxation.
As spring break comes to a conclusion, I actually hope most of us experience lethargy, laziness, and even some minor drooling. It certainly won’t hurt us. I hope all us will take some time to lie down on the couch and contemplate whatever our little heart desires. I mentioned a stack of books that need to be read in my blog yesterday, but I think I will just lie down and contemplate instead…And when Sonya pauses to do likewise today, I hope she will realize that she needs to become the 21st century version of a syndicated columnist like Erma Bombeck. I am not sure that looks like, but surely someone can figure that out!