We can label those people who are not sick.....lucky. Lucky they had parents with good genes. Lucky they were able for whatever reason to not have to experience pain and suffering.....at least not at an early age, so that it would leave a path of destruction along their lifepath. Who decided who would get sick and who would stay well? God? The devil? Cosmic forces? Or does it really matter that we figure that out, for in the end, it doesn't really matter. For whatever reason, you are being asked to endure something......no different than if you were born blind, deaf, or without all your limbs. There is no rhyme or reason to it, especially considering that a child would have to endure for a lifetime. It seems cruel.......but it happens everyday.
Everyday a child is born imperfect, and people get sick, through no fault of their own. They were just living their life, when all of a sudden something crept up and decided to steal the life they thought they were going to lead. And whether you are dirt poor, or filthy rich, it doesn't matter. Whether you were physically fit and did all the right things, or were overweight and never exercised, it still doesn't matter. Whether you had a traumatic childhood or were raised by saints, it doesn't matter. Bottom line is.......you got sick.
There is no room for blame here. You'll will find no purpose in a daily habit of asking "why", or explaining to others why, for this only makes the situation worse. You can ask yourself what your role is in this situation..........what can be done with this disease, or how can it be used in someway? We can sit and ponder on how awful it is, or allow it to be used for others to witness. What better way to teach a well person true peace, acceptance and perseverance? For they may go through life having taken their bumps, but will never understand what it's like to have their strong bodies compromised by illness. Seems an incredible way to teach gratitude.
They get up each morning wondering how many things they can pack into each day without worrying about how they will get around, are how they will endure the pain and frustration of having to use a wheelchair or cane. They can get up excited about their morning walk.....feeling their body breeze through the early morning fog, wondering if they could walk 3 miles instead of just 2 that day. They have their shower and get dressed with no need to rest before they can start their day or count the hours they have to stay down as opposed to up. They gather their briefcase, dress the children for school, or begin their writing for the day without having to take a hand full of pills to help them get through the day, especially one that makes their muscles work because they can't work without it.
The weekend coming up might be filled with a festival in town, a hike in the woods, going dancing with your spouse or shopping for new clothes. With your new walking shoes, you could walk for hours with no problem.....nor would it ever occur to you that you would ever have a problem. You only see your family physician for yearly checkups, and not sitting in a different specialists office every other week. Your pills of choice are only vitamins and an occasional one for a headache or backache from having worked in your garden too long.
The sick need not live in pity, nor expect it from those that are not sick. Pity or staying focused on the fact that you are different will only hinder your illness. And if you find yourself trying to defend your yourself or your illness, whether you were born disabled or suffer later in life, you will only weigh down your already depleted body. Unfortunately in this life, those of us who are sick will have to endure something much more devestating than the illness itself.........we will have to endure something that no one should have to endure........persecution and judgement for being different.
Society cannot place those of us who are disabled in a discarded pile, questioning whether or not we are truly sick. How are you to decide the difference? And more importantly, when were you given the power to judge or question in the first place?
If those of us who are sick have any hopes of getting better, or coping with the fact that we will remain sick for the duration, doesn't it make more sense for a physically healthy person to offer help, understanding and compassion, for those of us who are less fortunate?
It is so sad to realize that the ones we need the most to comfort us, encourage us and understand how we must live our lives, through no fault of our own, only continues to question and judge. It's also sad that until they are faced with illness themselves.....they will never "get it."
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