Floating in Zero Gravity

God made us some fascinating bodies. Take our ear for example. Inside each one of our ears are three semi-circular canals. One canal is positioned to control up and down motion, another side to side, and another for tilt. Inside each of these are little hairs that have fluid over them. When we move, so does the fluid, and in turn so do the hairs. The nerves connected to the hairs let the brain know where we are moving so we don't fall over (if you have ever seen Christin riding a bike or me playing basketball, you might question if our fluid was flowing correctly). When people drop sharply on roller coasters or on airplanes, this fluid lifts and it throws their bodies all out of whack.



In each of our lives we have a sort of internal equilibrium. Not the kind that works off of fluid and tiny hairs, but our daily interactions. Whether it is the time we wake up, when we say our prayers, what kind of toothpaste we use, what time our mailman comes, exercising daily, or having our favorite skillet to cook with, we all have factors in our life that add a little stability to it and keep us sane and balanced.

The last few days I have felt a little like I am floating in zero gravity. Not because I have fallen or banged my head an extreme amount of times, but because one of my stabilizing factors has changed. My sister.

You see, though we are very similar in many ways, our operating volume is not one of them. I will raise my voice at times in groups or on rare occasions, but generally I am not a loud person. Christin does not fit this mold. She is used to having people wince from the assault on their eardrums resulting from her laugh (not that I don't love her laugh, it is just a bit sharp at times). She is used to having people tell her to use her quiet voice. She finds it a shock if anyone ever asks her to use a microphone, regardless of the size of the crowd she is addressing. This week that has all changed.

Two days ago Christin lost her voice. It has been excrutiating for her. You can read her thoughts on it here. The thing is, it is weird for me. I almost don't know how to interact with this new quiet roommate of mine. I wonder why this girl is constantly whispering to me. I don't know if I need to talk softer to her so she doesn't feel bad, or if I need to talk a lot louder to compensate.

Christin, it is just weird. You are throwing off my life equilibrium. I know it is not your fault, but I need you to get better soon.