Wiggle Your Toes

It has been said that we wouldn't appreciate the good days without the bad ones. My father has always hated that sentiment. His retort would be to let him hit you with a 2x4 to help you appreciate how good you feel right now.

A few weeks ago I hurt my dominant hand. You may have seen the picture on Instagram. I was pretty dramatic about it. It turned out to be nothing serious. It was just an ugly, inflamed and bruised hand but I did feel a little bit like it was Apocalypse Now (caveat: I have not actually seen that movie). I will admit that I have never appreciated my right hand before it was painful to turn a page of a book, use a paintbrush or write a sentence. While I wish that I had not hurt my hand in that way, I did vow to myself that I would never take it for granted again.

Then I looked down at my toes. I can wiggle my toes. My toes help me to walk and to keep my balance. My toes help my feet get me to where I want to go gracefully. If I did not have my toes, or if my toes were broken, it would impact my life immensely. What if I could not respond to embarrassment or joy by curling my toes? I appreciate my toes.

In conjunction with this injury and these thoughts, I have also been on a certain reading path. I find myself drawn to autobiographical accounts of people who are about to die or who have lost, or who are about to lose, a mate. True, these books wreck me a little bit emotionally, but I find myself coming away with a very clear and valuable message: appreciation. Appreciate what you have when you have it because you may not have it tomorrow.

In the past month I have had several friends find themselves in dramatically changed circumstances. Two of my friends, a married couple, were in a motorcycle accident and ended up with with cracked ribs; fortunate to be alive. Another friend found out she had an inoperable tumor, leaving herself worried about what would happen to her two small children in the event of her worst case scenario. Yet another friend who faces losing her independence along with her ability to drive. And lastly, a friend who has buckled under the pressures of day to day life only to find herself in a psych ward. Circumstances can change in an instant.

You may not be living in your ideal circumstances. You may be facing a difficult (or many) situation(s) currently. However, I ask you this: What do you have right now? If you have sight, look outside at all of the beauty there is. If you live with someone, touch them. If you have taste, eat something delicious. If you have your dominate hand, write a thank you note. If you have a voice, tell someone you love them. Appreciate what you have, when you have it.

And by all means, if you have toes, wiggle them.