Pause to deal with The Last Pan of oatmeal cookies (the pan that traditionally gets burnt to a crisp because the baker forgets to set the timer). These are the variant called "Aggression Cookies" -- rumour has it that the recipe comes from the American Mental Health Association -- as a way to work off rage for which one has no legal outlet, because the cookie ingredients (butter/marge, flour, oats, dark brown sugar, a little baking soda if you happen to remember, I usually don't) are mixed in something huge like a jam kettle, with one's bare hands, until they are as close to homogenous as their nature allows.
They're delicious too -- basically, it's shortbread with oats in it -- and all that squshing around in the butter and oats is very very good for one's cuticles. So it's win/win!
And the last pan is now cooling.
I've been on a kitchen-jag the last couple of days, almost finished -- the aim is pre-prepped fast meals so as to free up time during the week for other, non-culinary, pursuits ...and also the avoidance of WASTE.
Meditating overnight on the angers of little children and how best and most wisely to engage with them, as an adult (well, officially, an adult). All the little Things are pretty prompt in announcing to the cosmos when they're not pleased...but from time to time one or other of them gets "stuck" in that place. It seems to Grandma, here, that helpless rage is a form of misery, and should be dealt with promptly, just like bruises and blisters and bleeding. I can remember being SO angry as a child that I made myself ill... so I am cogitating on how as a Grandma I am going to handle these episodes. (I get some opportunity to practise, too!)
Any thoughts on this?
2 comments:
Having home made oatmeal cookies on hand must help with Littles anger; surely cannot hurt to have cookies ready. I can remember being so mad I would cry and plot how sad I was, how sad everyone would be when I was proven correct, etc. It was overwhelming to be that angry. Oatmeal cookies are surely part of the solution.
"Helpless rage is a form of misery" sounds exactly right to me. It's also so true that one can get stuck there, and someone offering to help us find a way out is wonderful. It strikes me that the first step needs to be acknowledging in some way that one is miserable/angry and wants help. I think you sound like a wonderful grandma.
Post a Comment