Clay Pigeons and I

Sometimes I think that God must have had a lot of fun picking personalities for all of us. We are all some strange combination of our parent’s personalities, with a bunch of life and other “nurture” stuff thrown in, and then we “are who we are.” My mom, for instance: she is the world’s greatest wife and homemaker, the best person I know at anything that is stereotypically feminine and kind. Similarly, Dad is the best guy at anything “manly,” and his personality complements his abilities.

Then there is me.

You would think that I might have gotten the best of both of them. But no. Instead I’m talkative, loud and opinionated, like my father, and slightly crazy (but fun) like my mom. Instead of getting Dad’s decisiveness and mom’s desire to work in the kitchen and provide nourishing meals for her family, I got Mom’s quirks and Dad’s voice. Lovely.

On Monday I spent the day at home. Mom and Alician were in the kitchen making applesauce out of the crab apples they had picked, and Dad and Dan were outside shooting trap. And where was I?

Shooting Trap.

Again, could I BE more feminine? Sometimes I think it’s no wonder that I don’t have a boyfriend. I have some “feminine” qualities, and some “masculine.” Is it really that much of a surprise when I am called “intimidating?” I don’t think so. Considering that I have done more “guy” stuff than many guys have, and I’m not as good at most “girl” stuff as most girls are, I’m actually not that shocked at my dating history.

Not that I plan on changing anything.

I like that I can do stuff that most girls can’t. I love it that I’ve had “guy” jobs, and that I’m not afraid of guys in general. I don’t really like it that it’s not this innate desire to be in the kitchen providing for my “future husband,” but I also think that this comes with the territory, and when I have that sort of a person in my life I will enjoy (or at least not dread) doing those things that are generally filled by the role of the wife.

My personality has helped me out in some ways though, and I’m not complaining about who I am either. I am very thankful that I’m more of a “leader” than a “follower,” and I am also very thankful that I’ve managed to make relatively good decisions throughout my life without making 20 wrong ones first.

It’s just interesting what God makes of two completely different people, and how some strange combination of DNA and environment can create a person unlike any other person in the entire world.

By the way – trap shooting is really fun, and I did manage to hit 2 out of the 12 or 13 (or maybe 14 or 15) clay pigeons. Hey, I just said it was fun, not that I was any good!