My family describes me as clumsy. And yes, that I am!
Take last Friday for instance. As I swiped my card to get into the boom gate at work I dropped it out of the window. Then upon retrieving it (which is a major mission when you have to physically jump out of your car because you are vertically challenged as well), I knocked my head on the side mirror with a graceless thud! As if that wasn’t enough the card wouldn’t work again unless I swiped it through the opposite boom.
Of course I only realised this after climbing back into the car, so out I got, swiped the other side and climbed back in, by this time the tiny quota of patience that I am blessed with daily was already used up. When I finally made it to my parking space without another incident I thought I was in the clear for the moment – but it was not to be!
Unlocking the office is quite a procedure for those who are not all fingers and thumbs anyway – so for me it is the whole question of saying, “Ok Max, you can do this, first challenge of the morning, let’s see if we can get it right the first time.” But after I had dropped my keys for the third time I realised that it was one of those days again!
They occur very regularly in my life – and normally when it starts like that it stays like that until I’ve forgotten about it. Then miraculously it seems to get better again – mind over matter? Absolutely!
Then you read the definition of clumsy: clumsy – pronounced ‘kluhm-zee’ means awkward in movement or action; without skill or grace; awkwardly done or made; unwieldy; ill-contrived! Not very flattering at all, is it? This makes me want to do everything in my power not to be ‘kluhm-zee’ anymore, but it is in my genes… how does one get away from it?
My mom used to rag me constantly about how clumsy I was. Then it came out one day accidentally-on-purpose that her dad used to give her money for every cup of coffee she didn’t spill! Needless to say, she didn’t make a whole lot of money! Now where did I inherit that clumsiness from?
It really does take skill to trip over flat surfaces. I think I trip over my own feet at home at least twice a day and after all these years you’d think I wouldn’t stop every time to see what I tripped over? I still do, knowing that there will be nothing there.
If one becomes suddenly clumsy it can be the sign of a serious ailment, but what if we have always been clumsy? Upon further research, we are normally clumsy because something isn’t functioning properly and muscle reaction and sensory input all play a part.
Our bodies are machines and driving these machines takes motor skills and input. I even learnt that there is a section of the brain devoted to coordination and balance. I think mine has just never functioned to its full potential. According to a health website, if one works on one’s balance and hand-eye coordination one can reduce clumsiness. So I guess I’ll have to increase the core exercise and have my eyes tested! One place to start hey?
But to be clumsy is to be me? I don’t know how I will function without my faithful ungainly gawky mishaps? I might even miss those awkward spills and gangly falls. For now though, we concentrate on one thing at a time – and try to do it without a serious mishap! Heck – makes my life so much more interesting!
Love live and shine!
