We have had the grandparents visiting over the past two weeks. The in-laws came for the first week and my mother visited this past week. While the experience overall went quite well, there were a few minor downsides.
All of the grandparents have their favorite stories. Mine are no exception. Unfortunately, we have gotten to the point where they have begun to repeat themselves. The anecdote that was fresh and lively begins to lose its luster after the fifteenth retelling. At times, I have to catch myself from blurting out the end to the story before the current replay is completed. Sometimes it's a struggle to listen and wait for your opening to reply since it can take quite some time.
It took the space of this weekend without them to realize a few things. First, I ought to cherish the fact that they made the enormous effort to visit. They came from quite some distance away (my mother flew 5,000 miles and my in-laws drove seven hours) to be with us. Second, I should remember that these experiences are part of what makes them who they are today. There will come a day when I am the one who has told the same story one too many times. I should have the patience with them that I hope others will have with me. Finally, I ought to look for new angles. Perhaps a question or two could take the story in a slightly different direction. They could talk about some minor point which could lead to a very different discussion.
In the same way, there are times when I need to take the same approach at work. There may be times when I am tempted to tune out someone at work who seems to be repeating themselves over and over. Perhaps there might be some way to expand on the conversation or learn something new. If I am open to it, I might even learn something that I had not expected.
There are people I know who hate to watch the same show twice. I actually don't mind. Even when I know where the story is going, I am analyzing it to see what I liked and what I didn't. I might think about ways I might have done something differently or explored a different possibility. Many times, I'll even come up with an insight that wasn't there before.
I'll try to see if I can apply that same principle at work in the coming weeks.
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