Life is a privilege

This is a quote from the newspaper from Dr. Oliver Sacks who recently revealed that he has only months to live due to liver cancer.  This knowledge, he reports, has enabled him to see his own life "as if from a a great altitude, as a sort of landscape, and with a deepening sense of a connection of all its parts."  He states he is grateful to have loved and been loved.  "Above all, I have been a sentient being, a thinking animal on this beautiful planet, and that in itself has been an enormous privilege and adventure."  He said nothing about how much money he made or how many things he had acquired.

Last night my son-in-law was ill and passed out.  He hit his head but was not injured seriously.  It takes only an instant to change a life simply or drastically.  In the news there has been many deaths from earthquakes, storms, and other natural calamities.  We never know when it is our time to die.  It is so important to live each day with meaningful, loving and caring interactions with our families, friends, neighbors, countries, environment, animals and life itself. By living with faith, integrity, love and kindness, we have a wonderful landscape of our life to behold as we face death.  We are proud of who we are and what we have accomplished in our life as we positively interacted with our world and other life travelers.  Life is a privilege and it is important that we use every moment to remember why we are here and find what we have to offer to God and others.

Pain

My sister has a tumor and has surgery soon. For over a year she experienced excruciating pain but testing did not find the cause. Many times she was refused pain medications because doctors thought she was an addict and seeking drugs. She felt abandoned by God and became angry.  Why was this happening to her? She continued to experience pain until a doctor decided to pursue all avenues until he found the reason for her discomfort.  After many tests, finally the tumor was located.  At least my sister was now able to get pain medications. It took about 5 weeks to schedule her surgery because it requires two surgeons and many hours of delicate surgery.  So many times doctors encounter patients who fake illness to get pain medications.  However, there are many patients who have an unusual diagnosis and there are no particular known tests to identify their issues. It has to be difficult for a doctor to decide how to treat patients who have no insurance, no verification of diagnosis to explain pain origin, and science has no known way to determine validity of pain.  Please keep her in your prayers!

Priorities

I used to hate having curly hair.  In high school I used big cans on my shoulder length hair at night to keep it straight.  I didn't sleep well but my hair was straighter in the morning.  As soon as I walked out the door, my hair would hit moisture and would become frizzy and curly.  It was a losing battle! After years of trying everything including ironing my hair (and burning it and experiencing a horrible smell), I decided to embrace my curls.  I had my hair cut short and in layers. The curls burst out in all of their glory. It was finally easier to get ready for the world when I washed my hair, let it dry. brushed it and began my day.  I learned that I am who I am.  I learned also what I am not.  I do not have long, straight hair, a beautiful figure and I am not graceful.  I do have curly hair, a kind smile, a clean body and a good attitude.  God must have made me this way for a reason!  Life is never what we want or expect it to be.  It is a continuous surprise.  It is better or worse than we expected many times. Sometimes it is repetitious and seems that we are making no progress.  If we can learn to accept what we have been given, enjoy the moments and people we encounter, and embrace God's will for us, we can then feel more peace. Anxiety about the things we cannot change will no longer have power over our happiness. Our first priority is to put God first and let him handle the major challenges of our lives.