The Importance of the Ordinary by Dr. Juan Harrison
The Importance of the Ordinary
It’s easy to overlook what we have for what we don’t have. It may simply be that the Devil has got us so busy chasing our tail that we don’t have a moment to be thankful for what we do have. Gratefulness goes a long way toward helping us have peace of mind, something most of us humans find to be somewhat elusive.
Take breathing for instance. You don’t have to remind someone with oxygen lines sticking out their nose of the importance of their portable oxygen machine. A dialysis patient doesn’t need to be reminded of the importance of making regular trips to be treated. A heart patient doesn’t need much encouragement from others to seek help with the defibrillator/pacemaker when it gets out of whack.
One of the great values and benefits of being a part of a caring, loving family is the attention you get and the eyes that are on you as you interact with other family members. They often can be an added bonus and serve as extra eyes on us to help protect our welfare. Even family pets might sense you’re in need of some TLC after a particularly tough day.
Sometimes someone will ask me how it’s going, to which I might reply, “So far, so good.” Some days have to be divided into seconds, minutes, and hours. As you wait in the doctor’s office after a PET scan to tell you the bad or not so bad news, you keep looking up at the clock on the wall or keep pulling your phone out of your pocket as you await the results. Maybe you’re a young mother-to-be waiting to see the latest sonogram as the doctor sees something he might be concerned about. Maybe you’re at the funeral home with family as you pick out a casket and make final details for the service.
We’re given reminders every day of daily blessings we’ve taken for granted or overlooked. Truth be known, there’s a world of folks out there around the world who would gladly trade places with us. Flip on the Hallmark channel around Christmas and you’ll probably find a movie where a main character has amnesia or bumps their head and ends up in a world they dreamed of but finally discover they liked their old life best.
Most of us older guys tend to favor dull. Our hearts and minds probably couldn’t handle too much excitement after all these years of ordinary living after which we ultimately discovered wasn’t so ordinary after all.
By Dr. Juan Harrison
