La versión español está después de la versión inglés.
NO, I’M NOT talking about politics (enough is more than enough)! I’m simply quoting The Kid Brother. Per his instructions I phoned again Wednesday night (see yesterday’s post), “same time,” and once his roommate Chris (his secretary) got him to the phone SG and I sang a rousing rendition of “Happy Birthday.” In exquisite harmony.
The entire time we sang, we could hear The Kid Brother ranting on the other end. We ignored his rants and simply increased our volume. In the momentary silence that followed our finish (in perfect unison), I on the down-note and SG on the up, The Kid Brother yelled, “Enough is enough!”
I said, “We practiced all day!”
The Kid said, “Well, it was not good!”
SG said, “Happy birthday, Chuck.” Of course, The Kid said nothing, so I followed with a school-marmish “Thank you, Jerry,” which actually got a laugh from The Kid.
SG left the room and I attempted to have a conversation. One conversation a week with The Kid Brother can be challenging. Two in two days is an impossibility.
“So,” I asked, “did you like our song, Chuck?”
“You need practice!”
“OK, we’ll practice on you every week!”
“Forget it. I heard enough!”
“So, how was work today?”
“Boring!”
“How’s the weather?”
“Rainy!”
“Did you have something good for dinner?”
“Yeah.”
“Are you going back out this afternoon?”
“No.”
“Anything good on TV?”
“I don’t know.”
“OK. I guess I’ll let you go then. Have a great time bowling Saturday and I’ll talk to you Tuesday.”
“OK.” [CLICK]
I’m no little ray of sunshine. I live with clinical depression and many days are a battle. But I fight it as much as I can. I try to maintain a positive attitude. I try to smile. The Kid Brother is no little ray of sunshine either. I’m quite often his own personal sunshine committee. It can be exhausting. Some days, my brain hurts. Besides, I think I’m a pretty good singer!
.
NO, NO ESTOY hablando de política (¡suficiente es más que suficiente!) Simplemente estoy citando a El Hermanito. Según sus instrucciones, llamé de nuevo el miércoles por la noche (ver la entrada de ayer) “a la misma hora”, y una vez que su compañero de habitación Chris (su secretario) lo llevó al teléfono SG y yo contamos una interpretación entusiasta de “Feliz cumpleaños” en exquisita armonía.
Todo el tiempo que cantamos, pudimos escuchar a El Hermanito despotricando al otro lado. Ignoramos sus comentarios y simplemente aumentamos nuestro volumen. En el silencio momentáneo que siguió a nuestro final al unísono perfecto, yo en la nota baja y SG en la parte superior, El Hermanito gritó: “¡Suficiente es suficiente!”.
Dije: “¡Practicamos todo el día!”
Me dijo: “¡No fue bueno!”
SG dijo: “Feliz cumpleaños, Chuck”. Por supuesto, Chuck no dijo nada, así que seguí con una marmota escolar “Gracias, Jerry”, lo que provocó una carcajada de El Hermanito.
SG salió de mi oficina e intenté tener una conversación. Una conversación cada semana con El Hermanito puede ser un desafío. Dos en dos días es imposible.
“Entonces, ¿te gustó nuestra canción, Chuck?”
“¡Necesitáis práctica!”
“OK, ¡practicaremos contigo todas las semanas!”
“Olvídalo. ¡Escuché suficiente!”
“¿Entonces, Cómo estuvo el trabajo hoy?”
“¡Aburrido!”
“¿Cómo está el clima?”
“¡Lluvioso!”
“¿Tuviste algo bueno para cenar?”
“Si.”
“¿Vas a volver esta tarde?”
“No.”
“¿Algo bueno en la televisión?”
“No lo sé.”
“OK. Supongo que te dejaré ir entonces. Diviértete jugando bolos el sábado y hablaré contigo el martes”.
“OK.” [Click]
No soy un rayito de sol. Vivo con depresión clínica y muchos días son una batalla. Pero lucho cuando puedo. Intento mantener una actitud positiva. Intento sonreir. El Hermanito tampoco es un rayito de sol. A menudo soy su propio comité personal de sol. Algunos días me duele el cerebro! ¡Además, creo que soy un cantante bastante bueno!
.
Patience of a saint
Dave,
I wish. But I have always had more patience for my brother than for anyone or anything else in my life.
Think of all those ‘Brownie points’ you are gathering along the way, Mitch. They all add up and will get you all the good karma you will ever need.
Down deep I bet Chuck knows how lucky he is.
Jim,
I don’t really know what Chucky actually absorbs. But I do know he appreciates some moments… at moments!
He’s succinct, I’ll give him that!
Bob,
He never offers much when he’s asked a direct question. At other times, his stream of consciousness is hilarious… and mind-numbing.
til next tuesday…
Anne Marie,
And we’ll have bowling scores to talk about. I enter them into a spreadsheet and give home his to-date average. It’s the crux of our conversation.
awwww sometimes we have to step outside of ourselves and deal with the triggers and just hang on. That helps me.
Hope he had a nice Birthday.
parsnip
Parsnip,
Yep.
Awww, San Geraldo and San Scoot singing in “perfect harmony” to Try the Patience of a San Chuck. Brings a tear to my eye *sniff*.
Deedles,
It’s so easy to try the patience of Saint Charles and I know when it’s safe.
Your patience, positivity and generosity with your brother despite all the challenges is love in action. You are a wonderful big brother to him.
Debra,
There’s been room for improvement, but I have always had more patience and positivity for him than for anyone else. Thanks for the kind words.
I would be thrilled if someone called to sing happy birthday to me. I understand about the depression. I fight it all the time. Combine the depression with my anxiety and my brain is a tsunami.
Love,
Janie
Janie,
Oh, this house could ride those tsunamis with you. Thanks for surviving them all!
Brothers of any kind tend to get under each other’s skin….your brother is very successful at it 🙂 Yes, you definitely have to have patience over it
Cheapchick,
I know I can get under his, but mostly for no good reason. Other times, I do it just to make him laugh … which helps avoid quite a lot or temper tantrums. And he can be one of the sweetest, kindest people I know!
You are a wonderful brother and a caring one at that. You do your best living on the other side of the ocean. Maybe the kid brother does not tell you he appreciates what you do, maybe he does but just won’t say it for whatever reason. But he is a vulnerable person and you are there for him, you really are getting your stars in Heaven. Your Mom would be proud of you.
Larrymuffin,
I sometimes feel guilty living so far away, but I know for certain it has significantly helped him find his independence over the years.
I’d say you definitely get an A for effort!
Steve,
When my brother rates me, he usually says, “You could do better” and that usually evolves into one of our classic comedy routines.
What Larrry said!
Willym,
Thanks to you both!
Don’t knock family too much. If it weren’t for family I would be out of a job.
Urspo:
Yeah, yeah, it’s all about you. Honestly, although life with my brother has never been easy, he’s not the family member that paid my therapists’ electric bills!