It's funny. Never in a million years would I have imagined that either of my brothers would also be diagnosed with diabetes. But, as it turns out, that beastly dragon was hibernating through the last 23 years, until waking up with a growl and, I imagine, flying through the Islets of Langerhans and burning down the beta-cell villages with a fiery vengeance in my little brother's pancreas. That's a little dramatic, but I like the mental image. Even after all the fire and brimstone, my brother is handling this very well. I'm so proud of him. (Awwww.) He had a lot of information thrown at him by the endocrinologist, and he's taking it seriously and really trying to follow the guidelines. It's going to be tough for a while, and I have to remind myself of that; every day is going to be like an experiment with about a thousand variables. The first few days he called fairly often with questions, but I haven’t heard from him for a few days; I guess that’s a good sign.
What else can I write about? Well, let’s see…yesterday afternoon my mom, my best friend Brittani, and I went to the Mullins Center at UMass Amherst to see Cirque du Soleil Quidam. At intermission, Brittani asked, “So what does quidam mean?” I remembered reading about it, but I couldn’t say exactly. So, here it is from the Cirque website:
Quidam: a nameless passer-by, a solitary figure lingering on a street corner, a person rushing past and swallowed by the crowd. It could be anyone, anybody. Someone coming or going at the heart of our anonymous society. A member of the crowd, one of the silent majority. The one who cries out, sings and dreams within us all. This is the "quidam" whom this show allows to speak. This is the place that beckons - a place for dreaming and genuine relations where all quidams, by proclaiming their individuality, can finally emerge from anonymity.
The show was very entertaining. The clown was hilarious (and no, he did not have a red nose). The acrobatics were astounding, and all the different skills were spectacular. I felt inspired as we left the building. I still feel inspired! Last night I wrote in my journal, “I want to do that.” My favorite part? I don’t know, they were all so good. You might expect me to say the German Wheel act because I am currently taking a class in it at NECCA; however, I might have to pick something else. Mainly because I’ve seen lots of wheel videos on YouTube and have seen some really fancy routines, and the Quidam German Wheel act wasn’t as fancy. Although, he was performing on a rotating stage which was not very large, so that made it a bit more difficult. Don’t get me wrong, I really enjoyed seeing a wheel routine in person! But still, I think I’d have to go with the statue people. This was an act with two performers, one man and one woman, who moved very very slowly and balanced on each other. You could see every muscle on each of them. Then there was the lyra act. Then there was the cord act. Then there was the cloud swing act. Ok, so it was all good.
I don’t want these posts to be too long and time consuming to read, and I know I could write a lot more, but this is it for today. There is also a lot for me to do this afternoon before I head up to Brattleboro for acrobatics (acro for short) class! I’ll try to have another post in a few days with better writing and more details. Thanks and enjoy the weather!
