Our Kind of Crazy

"STOP! It's RED!"
"Why are you stopping at a green light?"
"Oh, my gosh! You almost got us killed!"
"Honey, I reminded you of that yesterday........three times."

God is crazy. He has an uncanny sense of humor.
How should I know? Because of my marriage to my husband.
My husband has ADD, and any trip in the car with him is a heart pounding
adventure to say the least. I do try my best to keep my mouth closed while he
is driving. But, sometimes, he still manages to become distracted. SQUIRREL!
I've learned to roll with his ADD more easily now. But, it wasn't always that way.

A few years ago, I would lose my temper....... a lot. I just couldn't understand how
anyone could forget so much stuff so easily. It drove. me. nuts! I thought he was
being insensitive, that he didn't care, that he was playing mind games with me
just to be cruel. But, I know my husband, and that didn't seem right either.

But, then, after homeschooling our second child for a few years,
I began to see the same traits in him that I noticed in my husband.
And, after talking to my husband and asking him a few questions, it then
became quite obvious that he and our son both have ADD/ADHD.

Since figuring this out, I am more patient with them both. And, it is easier
for me to help them from day to day.

Now, as I mentioned above...........God has a crazy sense of humor.
The ADD/ADHD is not funny in itself, nor is any "disability".
But, when you combine the right kind crazy in a loving marriage,
it makes for an interesting family relationship!

And, this is what you get: 2 ADD/ADHD individuals + 1 deaf/HOH person =
CRAZY! So, my husband and son can't remember half of what I tell them,
and I can't hear half of what they tell me! It amazes me that anything gets
accomplished around here! It also amazes me that the only two "normal"
individuals in the family haven't thrown in the towel on us and run away from home.
At least not yet........they're both under the age of 15. Thankfully! (Besides, one
of the "normal" children is asthmatic. So, he has his own set of issues. But, he
is the only one that can remember anything around here......so we need him!)

But, there is a lesson to be learned in all of this: patience.
Our broken-ness has forced us to learn to be more patient with each other.
It has forced us to slow down, to be more loving, kind, and understanding.
To have empathy for one another, and to be more willing to help when
one is struggling.

I now see our family very much like a puzzle. And, we're all one piece of
that puzzle. Therefore, we all need each other, to help each other in order
to complete the puzzle that we call our family.

I wish we didn't have ADD/ADHD, deafness, or asthma in our family,
but if it teaches us to grow in love, and to become better human beings....
to be more like Christ.........then maybe it is worth it. And, maybe,
though it isn't what we would choose, it is a gift to teach us lessons from the Lord.
To teach us to be more like Him.

Ecclesiastes 4:9-10
       "Two are better than one, 
because they have a good return for their labor:
if either of them falls down, 
one can help the other up."