Saturday, December 29, 2007

Healthy, Wealthy, and Wise


Count Rugen: Ah. Are you coming down into the pit? Wesley's got his strength back. I'm starting him on the machine tonight.
Prince Humperdinck: [sincerely] Tyrone, you know how much I love watching you work, but I've got my country's 500th anniversary to plan, my wedding to arrange, my wife to murder and Guilder to frame for it; I'm swamped.
Count Rugen: Get some rest. If you haven't got your health, then you haven't got anything.

(The Princess Bride)

"If you haven't got your health, then you have got anything." Not sure where this quote originally comes from but I was thinking about it a week ago. You see, I had just spent a good part of my "Westman" Christmas vomiting or fighting back the urge to vomit. It is amazing how when you are ill how little you can really enjoy other things. Seriously. At the time I remember thinking how my upset stomach was affecting everything. Here I was at one of my favorite parts of the year and I could not take joy from even the simplest pleasures. It reminded of the above quote and I realized how true it is.

Unlike during a bout of nausea, we aren't always conscious of how necessary good health is. A man ingests copious amounts of sugar without much thought until one day he is told he has diabetes. A woman leads an exerciseless existence until the doctor informs her she has heart problems. Maintaining ones body is always one of the easiest things to not make a priority - until it breaks down. Then it becomes a priority, a big one!

I have not been maintaining my body too well these past few years. I'm not stretching, do almost no aerobic exercise or strength training, don't get enough sleep, eat poorly, etc, etc. My body is starting to sound the alarm and I have to choose to make changes. What changes do you know you need to make? What's stopping you? Prioritizing my health is a rediscovered concept for me. Wish me luck!

May Light increase!

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

I know this sounds slightly insane, but what stops me is looking at all the work that has to be done. For instance, keeping the house clean. If it's clean and I'm just maintaining what's been done, I'm okay. When it's a disaster and I have to make some sense out of it, I'd rather sit on the couch. I'm working on improving in that area. It's a slow process.

Good luck with your goals!
Michele