Rough Start To A New Week

I received a couple of emails yesterday that brought smiles to my face. The first was from a co-worker at Humana. He told me that last Friday he was feeling uninspired and shared that with his boss. He was expecting her to send him something motivational or funny to cheer him up. Instead, she sent him my daily thoughts. I didn't even know she received them and neither did he! He asked me how many people receive my daily thoughts. I have no idea. My distribution list has grown over the years and many who receive them forward them to others. As far as I am concerned, my thoughts are like seeds thrown to the wind. I have no idea where they go or what they do. I am happy if I make one person's day better with something I've written. Another email was from a friend of mine who has a few years on me. I think he's in his late 80's but I am guessing on that. He was responding to my thought that you know you're getting old when your child is 56. He said, "Old is when you have children on Medicare". I believe he does have a son on Medicare. This reminds me of a former employer who is now 96 years old. He is being cared for by his young son who is 72 years old. They are both widowers and on Medicare. Bob Dylan and others who are rock stars of my generation are starting to get the Social Security checks and Medicare benefits. We are all getting older. It's just that some of us have a head start on others.

The rain of the weekend continued throughout the day on Monday. Was it the dampness that made my bones ache and my body feel old and stiff? Was it the overcast day that made me feel as though I needed a caffeine drip to be intravenously fed into my dull and empty mind? In general, I wasn't sick but I just didn't feel good. It's not unusual to feel like this on a Monday. As the study of physics tells us, "A body at rest tends to stay at rest and a body in motion tends to stay in motion". Do not fear. I should be at my usual 83% full capacity by Wednesday. I am trying to work up to a 85% capacity by going up and down the stairs and taking the occasional walk outdoors. Yesterday, being concerned that my head was going to go face down on my keyboard, I went outside for a walk in the light rain. My hope was that it would energize my brain and loosen my stiff muscles. It helped but not as much as a hot bath would do.

There are two weeks until Christmas. The somewhat warm and wet weather doesn't exactly set the mood but the Christmas tree lots I see around town help. A little snow would help a lot. Laying aside all the things I could complain about, I find within myself a quiet joy and a grateful heart during this time of year. Life is mostly good for me and I know it. It's not all a walk in the park or a day at the beach but I know I have much to be happy about. I try to remember that on days that seem a struggle.