Hello You...........

Myshel and I have a rather silly game going. A few weeks ago we were watching the movie Jungle 2 Jungle with Tim Allen. There's a small part in the movie, where Tim Allen's laptop talks to him when he turns it on. There's a picture of a pretty girl and in a soft, very suductive voice she says, "hello you". So I started saying that to Myshel when she would least expect it. We'd be standing in line at the store and I'd lean over and whisper, "hello you", or when we're watching TV or in the kitchen, whenever or wherever I would think of it, I'd say, "hello you". So, she started doing it back and like I said, it's become a silly game. I came home after running some errands the other day and this is what I found on my vanity mirror and bathroom mirrors (I hope you can see it, ok). I'd done this on her mirror a couple of weeks ago and she must have been waiting for an opportune time to get me back!

When I think about all this silliness, though, I realize that it's become more than a game. It's become a way of communicating with each other while saying very little. Myshel has never said it to me when it hasn't made me smile. No matter how grumpy or frustrated I am, it always brings a smile to my face. I know it's that way for her, too. Once we were arguing about something. Myshel was very angry at me about whatever the fight was about. I took a deep breath and I said, "hello you". I could tell she was trying not to smile and she said, "quit it, I'm still mad at you". It broke the tension and we stopped arguing. Another time I was standing in the kitchen crying. I was upset about something, I don't even remember what. Myshel came up behind me and whispered, "hello you" and gave me a hug. It made me smile and helped me feel better.

So, through what started as silliness, I've found a way to communicate with my teenager. It gives a chance to play and be goofy, but it also gives us a way to encourage, help, comfort, uplift, and lighten each other. Sometimes it's just another way to say, "I love you". I love and appreciate that and I love and appreciate Myshel.