Interruptions – April 10

Last month I went to a storytelling conference in Denton, Texas.  Zoom allowed me to attend without leaving my home.  I loved the workshops and the storytelling concerts.  I was particularly impressed by two children who did a tandem performance of Interrupting Chicken by David Ezra Stein.  Papa Chicken was reading his child a bedtime story.  When Hansel and Gretel found the candy house, Interrupting Chicken called out, “Don’t go in there.  She’ll eat you.”  She promised Papa she wouldn’t interrupt again.  But she did. When Little Red Riding Hood met the wolf, Interrupting Chicken yelled, “Don’t talk to strangers.  It isn’t safe!”  When Chicken Little thinks the sky is falling because an acorn fell on his head, Interrupting Chicken ssaid, “The sky isn’t falling.  It’s only an acorn.”

Life is full of interruptions.  Some are huge and others last for just a moment.  Some interruptions end up being blessings in disguise. Covid-19 interrupted my life for a year.  Being “elderly,” I sheltered at home.  I learned to use Zoom.  I attended storytelling and writing workshops all over the country without stepping out of my door or paying for a plane ticket. I joined a writing group based in New York.  My interactive storytelling programs at the Oakland Temple Visitor center were interrupted so I began storytelling using the Zoom platform.  In the process I have reconnected with college friends and made new friends.  Now that I’ve received the vaccine, I am ready to venture out into the world again—carefully, of course.  As I look toward the new normal, I realize that the routines that helped me manage in 2020 are going to be interrupted.  What things will I be able to keep?  What things will I let go of?

Interruptions are a way of life when there are young children in the house.  They also happen when adults live together in the same house. They happen in social situations. As I deal with them, I learn to be patient and then be patient again.  It is an ongoing process.  I consciously try to listen to others at the moment when they interrupt me.  If I wait until I am finished or have time, the moment of sharing may be gone.

There is no universal solution to the problem of interruptions because all interruptions are not alike. Some interruptions should be accepted with patience.  Sometimes I need to teach another person whether it is appropriate to interrupt me or others in a given situation.  I need to avoid interrupting others, but sometimes I need to be brave enough to interrupt someone when their behavior is inappropriate

. Managing interruptions is an ongoing process I’m still working on it.