Jeopardy

 "Awe is why we are here." Anne Lamott

This week I had the pleasure of subbing in a government class. The students had been studying presidents and so I brought a Jeopardy President's trivia game for us to play to review what they had learned.

I asked, "Does anyone watch Jeopardy?"

To which only one student responded, "Only when I'm at my grandpa's house."

I had to explain how to play. JEOPARDY.

About a year ago, I realized that within our own home we don't all watch the SAME thing. I decided that with/after dinner we would watch Jeopardy. Everyone watching the SAME thing.

There was some pushback from the wee one who mentioned MULTIPLE times that she could just "watch something else on the tablet."

It's been interesting to watch over the last year how Jeopardy has given us common conversation. We all know which questions Xman knows from American Literature and he has all beat at anything pop culture. We know which categories SD is the best at. Peanut consistently surprises us with how many science questions she answers correctly.

There's something we've lost as a society in the age streaming. We've lost the sense of family television. One thing, on one screen that we are all watching. In the 80s, IF our TV was on, you had to watch whatever my mother wanted to watch. We've become overwhelmed with too many options. We think quantity trumps quality.

More than giving us common ground, I think there's value in learning to watch something (or participate in something) that someone else chooses.

To choose to sit WITH someone else not BY them.

We have become a society of BY people. We sit around tables BY each other and stare at our own screens. We spend the afternoon at the park BY other people listening to our own podcasts. We walk through our days BY other people, not engaging, not participating.

I think we are called to do life WITH others.

We are meant to watch what others want to watch sometimes. We are meant to talk about what others want to talk about sometimes. We are meant to participate in activities others want to participate sometimes.

Mama Warriors, I think all too often we are too far on the other end of the spectrum. We tend to always do what the kids want to do.

There's value in insisting our kids watch, discuss, and participate in things of our choice as well. Not solely, but in addition to.

That we send the message that the world, or even our own lives, do not revolve around them.

Teaching them how to think outside of themselves.

Sometimes there's a lot to learn from Jeopardy.