I’m in love with Nebraska’s tourism campaign. “Honestly, it’s not for everyone.” How pure and real is that! I’ve never been to Nebraska, but if the people there are that down-to-earth, I want to go there.
I looked up more of their tourism ads. One talked about something Nebraskans do called “tanking”. They float down slow moving rivers in giant, metal livestock tanks. So, in essence, they are like live, people-sized apple bobbers.
That particular tourism ad, that mentions tanking, reads, “In Nebraska, we believe that only boring people get bored. So we invent our own fun.” So, Nebraskans are creative, fun and down-to-earth. Now, I really want to go there.
When our middle son was 18-months-old, he still hadn’t started walking. So like all good, relaxed parents, we compared him to our first child (we ignored all of the child psychologists who say never to compare your children). Our eldest son walked right on time according to the baby books, so we completely freaked out about our second son. We took him to a prestigious child development unit at a renowned Children’s Hospital. He checked out as completely normal and healthy. One of the doctors said to me, “You know, it is often the sign of the most intelligent people, who can entertain themselves right where they are without needing to go anywhere.” For the record, my middle son is now a Biochemistry major in college with plans to go to medical school. And he holds track records at his high school. Mamas, keep calm and carry on. Your babies are fine!
That doctor who advised me about my child must have hailed from Nebraska. Only boring people get bored. Now that we have our magical mystery cell phones, I guess all of us can easily stay in one place and not get bored. I wonder, though, how well we would do without the entertainment of the phone? Would we be good at inventing our own fun?
I think I am going to try to be more Nebraskan in my every day life. No, I’m not going to eat more corn. It gets stuck in my teeth. However, I am going to try to be more “real”, and try to take myself less seriously. I’m going to try to make the most of exactly where I am in the moment and I’m going to try to see all of the possibilities that are right there in front of me, without chasing “some perfect somewhere else”. I realize that this exercise is “not for everyone”, but for me, I’m seeing the value of walking like a Nebraskan.