It has occurred to me of late that all of my problems stem from one immutable fact. There is nothing I can do to change it.  There is nothing I can do to prevent it’s effect on my daily life.  No matter how hard I’ve tried, no matter the lengths I have gone to, it always wins out…

This last week has been a real eye opener.  I have been injured and I have been responsible for disasters and it has finally occurred to me why these things always happen to me.  I, my dear friends, I have Italian blood flowing through my veins.  How does this equate to injury and disaster?   Well it doesn’t directly, but it causes them nonetheless.  Confused?  Let me walk you through some recent occurrences:

Walking to bathroom to get a hair tie whilst holding hair (elbows are high in the air at this point).  Walking with purpose to get out of the house fast.  Walking through hallway and crack left elbow on edge of laundry door frame.  Skin broken and elbow bleeding, bone badly bruised (still hurts to bend it 4 days later).  Try not to swear or cry out as I don’t want to wake Deanna.  Decide I have to push on and get ready for work.  Tears welling as I finish tying up my hair and grab my bag.  Driving one handed to work and spend the day trying to not put my elbow on the desk - you know how you don’t feel your feet until you hurt them?  Elbows are the same.  Keep putting elbow on desk and sucking up the pain.  Reason for injury: WALKING WITH PURPOSE

Picking up half finished coffee and swirling the cup - don’t ask why, to aid in the mixing of the milk, or to add flavour, I do it and I did it today.  Excitement kicks in as I was looking forward to finishing my coffee.  Quick tip - don’t swirl above your keyboard.  Coffee spills out of the cup and quickly oozes into every gap in the keyboard.  Coffee also spills onto cork top desk.  Mad rush to clean up then drink the last quarter of a cup of coffee.  Sadly lacking enough caffeine - we emabark on another cup and hope history does not repeat.  Reason for mess: SWIRLING WITH ENTHUSIASM

Rearranging the cupboard, move things from shelf A to shelf B temporarily so I can move the items currently located on shelf C and relocate the items from shelf A shelf C.  This is not as confusing as it sounds, draw it out, you’ll see.  Try to move items from temporary location on shelf B and pull with superhuman strength.  Bash hand on the edge of the underside of shelf above, bruised the base of thumb on right hand. Reason for injury: PERFORMING TASKS WITH DETERMINATION

Trip, fall over, get up, repeat, trip, misstep, stumble, fall.  Everyday of my life.  Wonder why I cannot walk with grace, give up on the idea of grace, if it hasn’t happened after 46 years, it’s not going to happen now. Reason for clumsiness: BRAIN RUNNING TO FAST FOR BODY TO KEEP UP

Brush teeth, drop toothpaste on black top. Everyday of my life.  Attempt to wash toothpaste off black top.  Wonder why I’m brushing my teeth with something that clearly is ingraining itself into my DNA.  Wonder why they don’t make toothpaste in a black edition.  Reason for stains: BRUSHING WITH INTENSITY (MAYBE ALSO SINGING OR TALKING WHILST BRUSHING)

Carry on a conversation with someone (or a group of someones) and gesticulate (I talk with my hands).  Get excited by the conversation or reach a heated point, throw my arms and hands out too far and whack people.  Apologise profusely and skulk away to the corner as quickly and quietly as possible.  Reason for embarrassment: ENTHUSIASTIC COMMUNICATION

Can’t see the link?  Everything is done with GUSTO.  I blame it on being Italian, everything is done with an intensity and passion, I CAN’T HELP IT (see - caps lock just happened then), it’s genetic.  Lord knows I’ve tried to change, but I have come to accept myself for the shining beacon of GUSTO that I am - I sit here writing this with a delicious stain on my top - thankfully no-one will ever know about it.  If it’s a choice of living a life free of incident, free of downside, free of injury or living life with gusto.  I CHOOSE INTENSITY AND PASSION, I CHOOSE GUSTO - EVERYTIME!!!