I'm EXHAUSTED! Thank Goodness.

The main theme of this blog has been silence or me being a quiet man. The very name of this blog says it all. I don't talk much and I enjoy my times of solitude when I can just sit quietly.

For this very reason, Abby exhausts me. Abby is the extrovert in a family of introverts (Jessi is extroverted too, but she doesn't live in my house anymore). Abby draws her energy from being with people and interacting with them. She is the proverbial social butterfly. She thrives on action! The rest of the family is just the opposite. We draw our energy from our down time. Those times when we don't have to interact with others.

One of the ways Abby exhibits this extroversion is through conversation. Putting it simply... Abby is a talker. She's never quiet. She admittedly talks a blue streak. She says she can't stand it when things are quiet and therefore (maybe somewhat subconsciously) talks to fill the void left by the rest of us introverts. Since she's been a baby (and still to this day), Abby gets a burst of energy right before bedtime. Just when Tami and I are are the most tired after a long day, Abby ratchets up the talk, cranks up the energy level and is ready to PARTY!

Abby's mind goes a million miles an hour. Every thought that pops into her head, also comes out of her mouth. The result is an overload of information for me. But bless her little heart... this is the way God made her and this is how she processes everything... aloud. I confess my ears sometimes have trouble keeping up with the verbal barrage, but I do my best with my little chatterbox.

Abby can tire out this middle aged man, but I wouldn't have it any other way. There's never a lack of conversational topics when we're in the car. The dinner table is often a blow by blow description of the day at school and what particular teenage boy annoyed her and how he did it. Watching "Survivor " on TV is accompanied by a running commentary. Sometimes we tell Abby to "Take a breath". She knows that means we need a little break from talking

Abby exhausts me, but thank Goodness! I am often reminded there will be a time in my not-so-distant future that our nest will be empty. A time when things are all too quiet in the house. Maybe then I'll be the one talking to fill the silence. Take a breath, Abby, but only a short one. I'm listening.

I love you, Sugar Lump!