Hi, My Name is Dora

Some days, I wonder. Really, I do. I wonder about the mysteries of life. I wonder what I need to do. I wonder why I do the things I do... or don't do. And I wonder, especially lately, how I forget some things.

For EXAMPLE -- I was chaperoning at a Stake Youth event for church a couple of weeks ago. It was kind of a new thing. I hadn't chaperoned before. And I was a little flustered with all these young teens in my car. That was new too. And I was driving somewhere I'd never been before. And maybe it'd been a long week (we'll just say it was). Well we got there. All the girls got out and enjoyed the hamburgers and got ready for the pool party. I sat down and started to chat with one of my fellow YW leaders, Debbie. Momentarily, she left me. Moments after that, my cell phone rang.

Debbie: "Sharon?"
Sharon: "Yeah."
Debbie: "Did you know you left your car running?"
Sharon: "Are you serious?"
Debbie: "Yeah. It's running."
Sharon: "No."
Debbie: "Yeah. It's totally running. Do you want me to take your keys out and bring them to you."
Sharon: "Um... Yes?"

So I don't think I've ever done that before. I wonder how on earth I did it. There's a certain method, a kind of ritual, we each have to systematically park, get out of, and leave a car. I do it every day.... multiple times. And for me, that ritual usually entails important steps, such as turning off the engine, taking the keys out of the ignition and locking the door behind me as I leave. I skipped ALL of those steps. It's a wonder I was able to make it OUT of the car, all things considered. I mean, really!

But like I said, it was just that once. Right? I was totally out of my element. I was thrown off! No big deal.

Well, maybe. But then something else happened:

A few weeks ago, Ben and I went to go see the last Harry Potter. I love Harry Potter. I've read the whole series. Only once, of course, but I enjoyed that one time with each book immensely like a gorging addict. After we saw this last Harry Potter movie, Ben (who has not read the books) asked me how it all ends. And I thought. And then I thought some more. Then I replied I didn't know. He assailed me for being a liar. How could I refuse to tell him!?! Keep him in the dark?! How cruel could I be?!? But I protested to his accusations and stated over and over again, as honestly as I could, that I couldn't remember at all how it ended. I remember enjoying reading the last book. But I couldn't remember for the life me how the story went. Odd. I HAD read it, after all. You'd think I'd remember SOMETHING.

To remedy this problem, this week I went back and I read Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows. This is a rare thing for me to do. It's normally hard for me to have patience with rereading a book because I am so familiar with the sentences. I just end up breezing over the whole thing because I pretty much know it already and thus have a general policy to not read books twice. But since I had this unmistakable case of amnesia in regards to this particular book, I made an exception. Even so, I had a sneaking suspicion it would all come back to me as I went through the chapters, just like reconnecting with an old friend.

I Couldn't have been more wrong. SHOCKING! The whole book ending was totally shocking ALL OVER AGAIN, as I'm sure it was shocking to me the first time. It was just like th first time (though I can't really remember that either. Go figure)! I couldn't believe I'd forgotten that story! Those twists! That's crazy. I'm crazy.

Thus, I wonder some days. As I pondered over these to recent mental mishaps, I remembered seeing Finding Nemo on TV a couple weeks ago. Ah, Dora. Now there's a character I suddenly find myself able to truly identify with.