Day 20 of Gratitude Challenge:
What does it mean to be thankful for your health? A lot, I think. At its most basic level it can be a “There but by the grace of God go I” feeling we get when someone we know dies of a heart attack or gets cancer. The news jolts us into awareness of our mortality, health being what keeps us on the other side.
Being thankful for our health, however, means more than gratitude for being alive itself. On yet another level, it means appreciating the capacities allowed by our health – the cognitive ability to practice our profession and remember people’s names, the physical ability to walk up six flights of stairs when the elevator is being serviced (or when we just feel like it). It’s the security of knowing we can travel to remote places and deal with whatever conditions we encounter. It’s the freedom to put on a pair of skates or skis and try something new without getting wrapped around fear of frailty. It’s about confidence that we have the strength to move most of our own stuff when need arises and take care of our families, tend to our property, and still have energy to enjoy something of everyday life.
Today I attended my monthly aftercare meeting and I was reminded again of how blessed I really am. A guy told us that he has to have a triple bypass – he is in his 40s, and has been sober for over a year. He said that he is trying to give up smoking now. When he was given the news, his first thought was not to have a drink, but he really wanted a cigarette. I told him later that I would light a candle for him. He smiled and thanked me and said that would be really helpful. Another lady told us that she had been sober for 4 months – the longest period in her life, but she had a massive relapse last week, and is tired of travelling the length and breadth of the country, attending rehab centers. She was brought to the local hospital, and was the only person who didn’t mind waiting in A&E, unfortunately because there is an off licence across the street. She is now attending our therapist three times a week, to be given antebuse. I remember those days well, and I am now happy to be trusted to do the right thing. I am even more grateful when I think back to my own situation – I did have a couple of alcohol related seizures, and I am lucky to be here at all.
Yet, I’d suggest health is even more than living, more than functioning. By extension, being thankful for our health means recognizing the deeper dimensions of health itself. When we allow ourselves to wholly appreciate our health – appreciation being the full living out of gratitude, we use and develop our infinite capacities and likewise find infinite joy in its pleasures - the little things – the sun on your back, the feeling of human touch, the runner’s high, a nap’s recharge, a holiday meal’s flavor, the mind’s recollections. In combination with our physical capacities, they’re all part of our inclusive health.
Virgil had it right when he said,” the greatest wealth is health”. I’m thankful for my health, and for the health of my family and friends. Those around me are generally healthy and when faced with health issues, have been able to overcome them. I’ve heard a lot of people say that they took good health for granted until they no longer had it. So I choose to focus on the positives, and appreciate everything that I have and everything I am able to do right now.