Wednesday, July 21, 2010

Reminders...

I spent the last two days being reminded of a fundamental fact - that I take freedom of movement for granted. The simple acts of lifting food to my lips, brushing my fingers through my hair, rolling over in bed, moving about the room, answering a phone, sitting in a chair, talking and being understood with ease, walking and yes, running, are not to be taken lightly. So what if I had a frustrating run on Friday? I ran. I ran for a long time and a long distance. I took deep breaths, and I moved my body through time and space in a way that some can only imagine and never experience. I came home and prepared myself a meal, I moved through my house, I washed my own body. I settled myself on to the couch to rest and I got up to move around afterwards. I typed a post about my frustration. I did all the things that most of us do every single day of our lives and I did it without giving any thought to it. I took all that movement, all that freedom, for granted. I'm ashamed to think about how frustrated I felt over such a minor thing as a difficult run. I'm humbled to think about the struggle that others face each day. I should not need this reminder - my sister fights this battle daily. We live a few hours apart, and I find as the days pass, my daily life fills my mind and I forget. I forget to be thankful for movement, for all the things I take for granted. These last two days have jarred me out of my complacency.

Today, I'm reminded of all the sweetness my life has, I am thankful for freedom of movement, for family, for love and support. I am awed by the challenges that my sister faces, and grateful that she has the care and love that she does. As the days pass, I will strive to keep one corner of my mind free of my daily life, and instead, full of these reminders.

9 comments:

Mama said...

Well said. A good lesson to learn again.

Sunshine said...

Appreciation makes life sweeter yet.

Irene said...

Thanks for the reminders.

I, too, am grateful for what I can do, no matter how simple a task it is.

Anne said...

Great post...thanks.

Elizabeth said...

Glad you were able to put things back in perspective and see all the beauty of life around you.

Wes said...

Reminders are a good thing. They are there every day, if one but chooses to see :-) Everyone falls into the rut of "living". That's why its good to be reminded to stop and smell the roses!

Loved this post.

Sarah said...

So true! Thanks for the reminder. :)

Olga said...

Ditto on being thankful, Michelle. You take care of yourself. Running is not going anywhere:)

Darrell said...

I should probably print this and tack it to the fridge or the bathroom mirror.