Encircling Techniques

Cliche Busting

Upon perusing a lovely box of chocolates I received as a Valentine's Day gift, it came to my attention that embedded in the top lid was a guide to my wares. Each chocolate was labled clearly on this thin sheet of heart-shaped paper, enabling me to avoid those I dislike and quickly find the candies I adore. I immediatley thought of Forrest Gump saying, "Life is like a box of chocolates: you never know what you're going to get." In this case, and I believe in life also, I was able to choose my path based on the information presented to me. Life has an element of predictability as much as it does surprise.

Stress Testing

Lying in bed one morning in my seventh month of pregnancy, my husband's hand resting peacefully on my enormous belly, he experienced an intense moment of shock when the baby began moving around quite violently. His hand flying from the location of the kicking and the startled cry of near disgust brought to my attention the different ways in which we were going through this transformation of our lives. What had become natural for me, was quite alien to him. Upon the baby's arrival this fact remained true: it was as if I was the born leader of this operation as he struggled to learn the ropes.