Dumb

For a full year, from the age of about eight to nine, I lived my life thinking my little brother and I were idiots. The reason being, while our older brother was out enjoying his newly teenaged-ness and  the teeny tiny slither of independence that came along with it, we were stuck in the house. And after playing 52 pick up about 100 times and I Declare War and Go-Fish over and over and over again. After watching our Rugrats tape so frequently we were able to recite the words, we realized we were bored. Out of our minds. My brother and I were thick as thieves at that age so we always found a way to entertain ourselves one way or another. But this time, the tedium was too much to handle, even for us. We went to our mother and expressed our dismay, in our child like manner and she said "Bored?, You're not bored, Boredom is for dumb people." Safe to assume she was only trying to be reassuring in a way that only she can, but that scared the shit out of us.  Like really.Who wants to be stupid anyway? Obviously now, I realize the context of which  she said that in wasn't exactly the way she meant it. I understand now that my mother meant in order to be bored you would have to give up on or lack your own imagination as well as creativity. I.e. making you mentally less than in the everyday circumstance. And even though it's a valid thought, it's not necessarily true for every case. Sometimes you've just exhausted every possibility, sometimes you just run out of stuff to do. What my mother didn't understand then, which I hope she does now, is that boredom isn't a soft spot on your character or a red flag to the person you grow to become. In my opinion, boredom is only a part of the system of  inevitability. Such as death or loneliness. Boredom doesn't make you any more stupid than loneliness makes you a loser. By definition, a loser is someone who people do not favor because they lack the charisma and the drive to do anything remotely successful in life.  You can be surrounded by  a stadium full of people and still be a loser, the same way you can be the most successful person ever to live and still be lonely. Unfortunately for me, I didn't grasp that concept until I was ten. But I guess better late than never, right? Which is more than I can say for Mother Dearest. Anyway, the lesson here children, somethings are just a natural part of life and no matter how uncomfortable it may feel at the time, it will pass. Feeling and aknowledging that discomfort doesn't make anyone any worse or better than anyone else.