Sometimes I feel a little bit backward. Not that I plan on changing anything about myself, but it can be quite ironic to me that I am so disappointed in Paula lately when most people with TS would be so very grateful.

Paula has been MIA the past few weeks. Sure, she pops up every once in a while, but I'm disappointed because I started to attend a congregation of families instead of just my peers who are all single professionals. The thing about families is that it means children. Children are the best when it comes to Paula. They have fewer filters than adults and they speak their mind in such an innocent way that it just is fun.

I have been attending this congregation for four weeks now. And church meetings are three hours long. that is twelve hours without a peep from Paula! Not a single sound! I have told a few people that I have Tourette Syndrome, and I'm fairly certain they think that I am lying at this point. My physical tics have been present, but mild enough that no one notices. Even the big painful shoulder tic has gone into hiding!

I have been asked to speak and address the congregation tomorrow, so maybe she will pop up just for nervousness' sake. I kind of hope so. That way I will be facing everyone and get to see all the reactions. Maybe I'll get a good story or two out of it so I will keep you posted.

My Little Teacher

I want to share a cool lesson I learned this week from Paula. I always grew up a very shy person and struggled to speak my mind. Paula obviously does not have this problem and has taught me well over the years to speak up for myself. Every once in a while though, I don't speak up still. Don't you worry, though, Paula takes good care of me. She also reminds me that people tend to be a lot more kind and understanding than I think they will be.

I have this group of friends and we love watching old movies. When I say old, this includes silent films as well. Our most recent film was a Jimmy Stewart film called The Stratton Story. It is a true story about a baseball player. Well at one point in the movie, there was a surgery going on. Back in the day surgeries were a little different than they are now, so my intelligent friends got into a discussion about penicillin. It got rather involved and it got to a point where I couldn't hear the movie. Those who had seen it before probably didn't mind, but I hadn't seen it and wanted to keep up.

So I leaned closer and was focused on trying to understand before Paula finally gave up and chewed them out. Her incoherent babble got all of their attention before she finally yelled, "SHHHH!" This, of course, gave everyone a good laugh. Also, for the record, that was a new one. She has never shushed anyone before this, but it was amazing how quickly she was able to get results!

The one I normally call a diva sure taught everyone a lesson that night. My friends learned not to talk during movies or Paula will rip them a new one, and I learned that people are willing to listen when chastised in love. No one got their feelings hurt, yet no one kept talking. Sometimes, I need this reminder.