In the beginning

"Never laugh at live dragons, [Amy] you fool!" [s]he said to herself... "You aren't nearly through this adventure yet," [s]he added.

Actually this is what Bilbo Baggins said to himself in The Hobbit, but since I read it, I've been saying it to myself. Life is easy, it's the dragons that are difficult. Marriage problems, money struggles, raising children, finding work, losing a job, death of a loved one, health issues, and caring for aging parents are all examples of life dragons. 

When I was in Junior High a girl wanted to fight me. I accidentally squirted ketchup on her so she threw a red slushy on my sister's white cable knit sweater that I "borrowed". Instead of turning the other cheek or punching her, I yelled with as much gusto as I could muster (which wasn't much), 'What did you do that for?!' She shoved me, I shoved her back, but not with any power. The kids dropped their books and came running yelling 'FIGHT! FIGHT!' My strength failed me. I had spaghetti arms. It was like a bad dream. I wanted to hit her, but my adrenaline booster failed me. I swung at her like a rag-doll being controlled by a drunk puppeteer. Thank goodness a teacher came and broke it up. 

That's how I approach my dragons. I sit there and take it. I don't budge much, I don't punch back very hard, I don't run away very far, I don't scream and yell as loud as otherwise could. I take a few punches while attempting a few weak attempts at hitting back. Then I cry in frustration. Then I laugh at the recollection of my weak attempts at fighting back. Most of the time the narrative in my head echoes the Hobbit:

"It was a terrible battle. The most dreadful of [Amy's] experiences, and the one which at the time [s]he hated the most - which is to say it was the one [s]he was most proud of, and most fond of recalling long afterward."

Because at the end of it all Gandalf turns to Bilbo and says, "'My dear Bilbo [and Amy]! Something is the matter with you! You are not the hobbit that you were.' And then they crossed the bridge and passed the mill by the river and came right back to Bilbo's own door."

"So comes snow after fire, and even dragons have their ending!"