My bear to cross . . .
When I was growing up as a child in a small Kansas town where EVERYONE was a member of one or the other of two churches, one thing I heard people say from time to time was, “This is my cross to bear” - by which I understood them to be saying that some burden was theirs to deal with. Nobody could help, and the problem might never go away. Much like Jesus on his way to Calvary.
Well, in circles of those who seek spiritual growth, there is a similar notion - that the universe seeks balance, and those who seek spiritual growth may be “balanced” by physical limitations or self-imposed restrictions.
I’m facing a growing awareness that this may be exactly the description of my own physical limits since the bone tumor in my leg back in 1980. The arthritis (which the No Grain, No Pain book describes as an auto-immune disorder caused by intestinal leaking after prolonged NSAID pain killer use) is going systemic, my migraines are taking on extra symptoms (by which I mean that the 3 classic symptoms that earn a headache the term “migraine” are now arriving in pairs) and my physical strength is declining despite my workout program. No, not the strength - the endurance. I have no energy reserves.
I’m not saying all of this to wave a white-flag, or imply that I’m giving up. I fully intend to keep trying to heal my body. It just seems that every time I take one action to fix one area of my health, it throws another out of balance and my health in that area declines.
I just have to accept - in advance - that it may be a fools errand, and be prepared to live with that. With my family genetics, it is entirely possible that I have another 30-50 years to live, so accepting this “as it is” while seeking ways to make my life and this world better are key ideas to balance against each other for inner peace. I think.