Paradigm Shift, Revisited

I said I had another story about paradigm shifting and parenting. This last one was really the first. I thought of this story first, but then the other stories kind of made more sense to me, so they were posted first. The harder concept with this story is that our parents did a good job of maintaining our twin individualities. We were so often frustrated when someone would give us a letter/permission slip to take to parents, a flower, a birthday gift and tell us, "You don't need two, you're really one person anyway." My answer is: How do you share a "Jingle Jump"? The point of that Jingle Jump was to turn the bell around your ankle all day, so, when was the sharing going to take place?

My parents were very good at letting us maintain our identities. We wore different colored tennis shoes so they could tell us apart, but one day, my mom let us switch our usual red and blue shoes so we could "trick our daddy." In my mind, at a very young age, that fun game was what helped me do my earliest "deep thinking," as Kerry and Steve call it. I was able to think through some "I'm an individual" thoughts. So hard to explain, but a great technique. Thanks, Great Grandma and Great Grandpa!