One more thing...

...I was thinking about Justin and something he told me in the parking lot at church Thursday, after Bible study. He was the one with the time crunch, since he had to go to work but still, "he had words left over". This was something he had told me when he was a little boy. I had gone into his room to tell him one more time to stop talking and go to sleep!!! "But, Mom, I have words left over...." Yes, when he was tested for admittance to St. Johns when he was 5, the assistant Headmaster called me to report that although Justin was polite, well-mannered, and all that, he DID have a problem---"Justin exhibits some verbal over-flow...." What?!? Have you ever heard of such a thing? What a way to phrase it! Go ahead and say it, Mr. Edwards....he is just like his mother!!! This verbal overflow made Justin a perfect candidate for the pre-k program ( and another year's worth of tuition!) where the teachers would work with him to dial it back some. Didn't work....

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Back to the the parking lot (I digressed (over-flowed)).....Justin was excitedly telling me about the comic books characters, picture my eyes glazing over, and still trying to absorb what he was telling me. Then he launched into why he was doodling something on the napkin during Bible study. I did see him write a few things but paid little attention to what it was, figuring it was stray thoughts. Well, he had come up with the idea, shared with me before, for designing a glow-in-the-dark paint for cars so that no matter what, they can be seen at night. A safety issue, not for the person driving the glowing car, but the other drivers being able to see them. He had asked his friend, the civil engineer, what the painters use on the roads to mark the lanes and arrows and found out it was plastic. This is his mind going......

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Justin asked me, as one subject flowed into another, if I knew the expression 'aliens and robots'. I said I had heard it but he offered the explanation for me. He said, "Mom, you and I are aliens...." which I could have easily told him. But, wait, there's more. "Some people go through life looking either straight ahead, or side-to-side. Aliens look up and all around....." I was just given a great compliment, I think! He related a recent experience with his robot friends---this past weekend the three guys had gone to the fairgrounds downtown for a Wing Fest, where area restaurants and vendors gathered to sell their wings. It turned out to be too rich for their blood so they went to The Landing instead. They were heading for the American Cafe and got separated in the crowd gathered for a free concert. Justin positioned himself on the stairway leading to the restaurant where they were headed and could see his buddies, but they could not see him. He waved his arms and tried to call out over the band, but to no avail. They were looking straight ahead for him, or side-to-side, and not up. Huh....As Justin put it, "What was our goal? To get to American Cafe. That is where they should have looked, and not at people's shoulders and backs!" Robots vs. aliens. I just hope and pray I never get separated from Justin in a crowd and not be able to find him, and become less alien!

Justinisms

One of my more faithful readers commented (thanks, Darla!) about how she finds Justin and me amusing. Really, Darla, you would be amazed at just how funny this kid is, without even trying. Or so sweet. Make no mistake, he gave us wwaayy too much grief regarding doing homework and chores, oh my goodness, he was much/is less than inspired. We often wondered where he got this work ethic and attitude because his father and I were all about work and our business, but Justin was not. But he would use his being very bright to figure out ways and plans to avoid work, or to streamline it, anything he could do to get out of it!

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As far as coming out with funny things, my mom often recalls her favorite episode, one of his "Justinisms", as they came to be known. The three were of us were driving down one of our incredibly busy streets heading toward home one afternoon when Justin was about 4 or 5 years old, I think. At this time, the area of this road had few businesses or dining establishments on 'the way home'. Justin announced that he had to go potty, to which I said there was no place for me to stop right now, he would have to wait until we got home. I was not lying, there was nothing on the southbound side of Blanding, not even a gas station, for a long stretch. From the backseat he heaved a great sigh and said, "Okay, then. I'll just hold my knees together and pray....". After a beat, Mom and I just lost it, laughing, and I decided I had better find a place to turn around and go back the other way, crossing three lanes of traffic, to find him a bathroom!! We needed one now, too!!! Holding our knees together and praying, we went potty at the Hardee's.

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Mom sewed clothes for the kids in our family, and for Justin, camp shirt and short/slacks sets were wonderful. One day he opened a 'care package' that we had picked up at the post office, mailed by his grandma to him. She would draw pictures of "ephaloes" (elephants) for Justin, his favorite animal since he was little, and one of those was in the care package, too. He pulled out a couple new outfits, perhaps even a pair of pj's, and hugged them. I said, "The Lord has really blessed Grandma's hands so she could make these for you...." to which he agreed. We drove a bit down the road before he announced, "The Lord has blessed the hands of the banner makers, too...", referring to the cross-stitched banners hanging in our church. Yes, the Lord does bless the hands of Twila and also June, who used to help with the banners. It just blew me away that he would even think of that. Every now and again when I look at the banners which remain hanging in the church, I think of his remark, which I have shared more than once with Twila, whom he considers his 'other' Grandma!

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Justin used to tell us his dreams, just like I do! He would sit at the breakfast table and relate the entire dream, pausing as he tried to remember, or so we thought, the highlights of his dream. At one point I realized he was embellishing this particular dream, making a story out of it (likely not eating breakfast and time was of the essence, of course). I said, "Now I think you're making stuff up..." to which he replied, "I'm just adding details for interest...." Again, Mom and I were dissolved in laughter. "I'm just adding details for interest..." Love it! I wish we would have harnessed those dreams/stories back then!!!

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There were countless examples of Justinisms, but I think the one I remember now was not that long ago. It was spoken when our friends, the Prange's, were visiting us from Morton Grove. In fact, that visit was about 5 years ago next month, as today is my great-nephew, Manny's, birthday! We showed the Prange's photos taken at Manny's baptism and one of the pictures showed Gabe, who is only 16 months older than his new brother. Gabe was born with a moustache and sideburns, very attractive on an infant. Justin piped up, when showing the photos, "You'd think Gabe would shave for his brother's baptism!" Of course, we chuckled here at my house, and I was told by Pete that their entire visit in Florida, that line was the highpoint! He said they'd be driving down the road and one or the other would say, "You'd think he'd shave for his brother's baptism..." and just lose it. They probably had to hold their knees together and pray,too!

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Okay, family and friends, can you remember any other Justinisms from little boy on up? You would think his mom would never forget them, but somehow, I have. We should have written them down, right? Now is my chance if you can jog my memory....