When I'm thinking clearly, I'm aware that I've led a charmed life. Parents who have loved me unconditionally every day of my life. A wonderful woman who has been my wife for 34 years. A son whom I cherish and admire. Friends who enrich my life in profound ways.
I've never had to deal with a serious illness. Certainly, I've had miserable colds and more than a few ferocious cases of the flu. With each bout of short term sickness, I've been grateful (usually when I'm getting well). People think I'm kidding when I say that being sick is good for me. But I'm not kidding and it is good for me – because it reminds me of how marvelous it is to be healthy.
I suspect most people (especially me) would appreciate their vision more if they were blind for a day. Most people would assign greater value to their mobility if they were unable to get out of bed and get themselves to the shower. The same concept holds true for our ability to speak, to hear, to think, to live without debilitating pain, and all the other things we often take for granted.
On this Christmas Eve, many of us are facing the scariest, most uncertain financial times of our lives. But the truth is, in our worst case scenarios, most everyone reading this blog will still live in far greater abundance than the majority of the earth's inhabitants. Most of us will not want for nourishment or shelter. And most of us will probably retain a substantial portion of the material goods we (mistakenly) believe we can't live without.
But I have hope for a greater outcome. I have hope that these difficult times will cause us to reevaluate some of our most unquestioned assumptions. That we will make a concerted effort to acknowledge on a daily basis just how blessed we are. That we will come to understand what truly brings us joy. And that we will all learn to be more loving, more grateful and more capable of contributing.
Merry Christmas.
