“I really believe the universe rewards the courageous.”
health
Fun and Natural
“Fifteen minutes of fun exercise each day is the equivalent of one anti-depressant.”
Shawn Achor, The Happiness Advantage
Addiction
“The thing that will give you your body and nervous system back is physical exercise. I can’t stress it enough. That’s how I got my body and nervous system back. You have to go to boot camp. It makes you feel better. It’s the only thing that does. Eventually, it scours the devil out of you.“
James Taylor on his addiction to heroin and alcohol
The Chart
My father is currently under hospice care as his advanced lung cancer progresses. I’m here with him and my mother. Many family members and friends have come to visit and to help. As his palliative care treatment ebbs and flows, I noticed that the emphasis has been on the med and not so much the symptom. Because my mom can get anxious and stressed when she’s sleep-deprived, alone with dad and he’s in pain, I created a chart I thought might be helpful.
His liver has been compromised, so we are trying to avoid any unnecessary drugs.
Opal of my Eye
Lessons from my dog:
Find a quiet, sunny place to sit and just enjoy!
Jump and run even if you’re so sore afterward that you can hardly walk.
Eat with gusto and no regrets.
Forgive quickly and stay faithful.
Always go for walks and smell flowers along the way.
Naps = good; stress = what’s stress?
Faithful
Would you still love me if I was sick and dying?
Would you hold my hand all day in the hospital room while the world outside went on and on…buzzing with activity?
Would you comb my dirty hair and bring me clean underwear and ask the doctor when I am allowed to shower?
Would you give me words of love and comfort as my spirits start to wither?
Would you stay with me?
Le Corps
Don’t ever – ever – take your health for granted.
Form dissolves over time. It is inevitable. But take care of your body as much as you can because it’s the only vehicle for your soul.
You’re *Not* Special
“The truth is, there is no such thing as a personal problem. If you’ve got a problem, chances are millions of other people have had it in the past, have it now, and are going to have it in the future. Likely people you know too. That doesn’t minimize the problem or mean that it shouldn’t hurt. It doesn’t mean you aren’t legitimately a victim in some circumstances.
It just means that you’re not special.”
Mark Manson, The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck
Loss Can Lead to Awakening
“For many people, illness – loss of health – represents the crisis situation that triggers an awakening. With serious illness comes awareness of your own mortality, the greatest loss of all.”
Eckhart Tolle
Stillness
Walking on the beach in Mexico was healing.
Kismet 