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habilimented
Mar. 1st, 2021 11:32 amMy father's parents, Charlie and Lottie, were the source of treasured anecdotes from our childhood onward. Often the stories arose from the contrast they presented: Lottie was an archetypal worrier and ditherer, while Charlie was a genial, unflappable stoic. Probably the most classic Charlie and Lottie story is The Pie On The Car.
They were over visiting at our house, and had arrived while my father was out buying groceries. He returned and unloaded the car just as the skies opened up with rain so heavy you could barely see through it. My grandparents helped my parents unpack the bags, and then mom noticed that the pie dad was supposed to get was not there. At first he was confused, cuz he was positive he bought it. Then he realized that he had lifted it up onto the roof of the car while he was unloading, and then had forgotten it there. Everyone crowded around the back door to look at the driveway and yes, sure enough, there was the pie, getting drenched.
Lottie immediately fluttered and cried out, "Charlie! There's a pie on the car! There's a pie on the car!"
In reply, he drawled out, "Keep your shirt on, Lottie." To us little kids, that line was inexpressibly hilarious, and many is the time we recalled it in the years since. [Maybe you had to be there.]
For some reason, I have been thinking of that story a lot, the last few days. And I am struck by the humble wisdom in it. I realize that, for many months now, I have been experiencing a lot of anxiety over everything and nothing. Everything is cause for alarm. I have become a classic Lottie. And, the other day, I read something that said the major components of fear and/or anxiety are overestimating the harm a situation will cause and underestimating our ability to cope.
In other words, not keeping the situation in perspective.
In other words, not keeping your shirt on.
And so, lately, when I find myself unduly concerned about some hypothetical, I tell myself, "Keep your shirt on, Lottie."
And, oddly enough, it helps.
They were over visiting at our house, and had arrived while my father was out buying groceries. He returned and unloaded the car just as the skies opened up with rain so heavy you could barely see through it. My grandparents helped my parents unpack the bags, and then mom noticed that the pie dad was supposed to get was not there. At first he was confused, cuz he was positive he bought it. Then he realized that he had lifted it up onto the roof of the car while he was unloading, and then had forgotten it there. Everyone crowded around the back door to look at the driveway and yes, sure enough, there was the pie, getting drenched.
Lottie immediately fluttered and cried out, "Charlie! There's a pie on the car! There's a pie on the car!"
In reply, he drawled out, "Keep your shirt on, Lottie." To us little kids, that line was inexpressibly hilarious, and many is the time we recalled it in the years since. [Maybe you had to be there.]
For some reason, I have been thinking of that story a lot, the last few days. And I am struck by the humble wisdom in it. I realize that, for many months now, I have been experiencing a lot of anxiety over everything and nothing. Everything is cause for alarm. I have become a classic Lottie. And, the other day, I read something that said the major components of fear and/or anxiety are overestimating the harm a situation will cause and underestimating our ability to cope.
In other words, not keeping the situation in perspective.
In other words, not keeping your shirt on.
And so, lately, when I find myself unduly concerned about some hypothetical, I tell myself, "Keep your shirt on, Lottie."
And, oddly enough, it helps.
