“Sorry, Karen, gotta go take my sleep aid now.”
My sister and I laughed as we hung up the phone after a good long conversation of catching up on jobs, friends, hobbies, recipes, and . . . ailments. Even as I write this, I have to laugh. I never thought it would be me! Sleep aid? Ailments? Really? Even just a few years ago, I’m pretty sure I held a privately derogatory view of anyone who had to use a sleep aid. “Just go swim or do some exercise,” I would critically and silently think.
Still chuckling to myself, I took my sleep aid and began my home physiotherapy regime for the frozen shoulder I’d been experiencing for the past seven months. As I worked through the 20 or so stretches and exercises followed by 15 minutes of icing and heating contrast therapy, I had flashbacks of my dad doing home physical therapy after his double knee replacement. “Oh no,” I thought, “is this just the beginning of a long road of ailments?” And I remembered how it was kind of annoying that he talked about it so much. Just like I was starting to talk about my shoulder. Sigh.
After the hour of physiotherapy, I still was not tired, so I decided to get a jump start on the week. First order of business: restock the weekly pillbox. Medicine for high blood pressure, high cholesterol, Vitamin D3, Calcium, Glucosamine, Magnesium, and two extra strength Advil for every morning; more Advil each night. More flashbacks. Mom and Dad had different approaches to daily self-care. Mom’s approach was aspirin, chocolate and coffee. Dad had a drawer full of every imaginable vitamin per the recommendation of Adele Davis – famous health author in the 1970s.
I remembered the daily routine of having to take a spoonful of cod liver oil and then burping it up all morning and experiencing the disgusting taste all over again. I remembered my parents poking holes in Vitamin E pills and squeezing the liquid out onto my sun-poisoned skin. I remembered hearing ad nauseam about the benefits of Vitamin C and how many ailments it cured. I remembered the horrible smell and taste of the many vitamins we had to take to earn our allowance. I looked forward to growing older and moving out so I would not have to deal with vitamins ever again. Now I wish someone would pay for my vitamins.
Since the beginning of time, humankind has strived for eternal life. Often our striving involves a lot of time, resources and attention to techniques to extend our days minimally (both my parents passed away at an average age in their family). As a follower of Jesus Christ, who lived to the ripe old age of 33, I think that perhaps if we learned to number our days as he did, the wisdom gained would lead us to focus on how we live; not how long.
A hard pill to swallow.
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