Wednesday, August 26, 2009

That Which Matters the Most

I love this picture. She looks so healthy and happy. How divine.

Why is it that, until that which matters the most is compromised, we don't pay good attention to it? Marriages falling apart go unnoticed until one spouse asks for a divorce. Parents ignore their children until they find out that their kids are on drugs, or sleeping around. Then, they seem so shocked. This is what happens when you don't pay attention to life. I do, actually, and I think it's due to my hypersensitivity to it. I am constantly aware that life is fragile, and that every good thing is a blessing. I am big about that which I love, and I let everything else sort of fall to the wayside. It is my choice to live this way. It doesn't make me much of a social butterfly, and you will rarely find me at large social gatherings that don't involve loved ones, but to those close to me, I give them the world.

If you were to ask people what matters most to them, I bet the majority wouldn't say money, or social status, but you'd hear a lot of them say health for themselves and their family. Yet much of our society focuses on getting richer, working harder, and showing off their status with material things. Why not focus more on health and nutrition, and time spent with loved ones?

Assuming that health is up there for you, think about what it is that you do everyday to support your health. Are you eating well? Drinking lots of good things? Water, tea? Are you exercising, keeping your muscles and bones strong? Are you paying attention to your heart, your lungs, your organs? And if it's the health of your family that matters to you, well, what are you feeding them? Think about it.

We all get really good about brushing and flossing about two weeks before we go to the dentist for a check-up, but how about the rest of the year?

More than half (and I am being generous here) of the people in the U.S. don't work out. It isn't until the doctor says that their blood pressure is dangerously high, or their cholesterol is out of whack, that they start thinking about getting healthy. Usually then, they go into fear mode and dive into a program that they aren't prepared for. Either they strip their normal diet of everything "naughty" or start running a couple of miles a day. After the fear subsides and the strict, new plan gets old, they revert back to their old habits. 

Let's not be one of those people.

Think about your health. What about it would you like to improve? Start adding things like walking, water, vegetables. Start allowing bad habits (smoking, drinking soda) to fall away. Let's stop grabbing at the fat we want to lose, stop hating our bodies. Instead, be thankful that we have those body parts in the first place. I really don't like to use common sayings, but I have to here. Your body is your temple. Treat it as such.

End the fat talk, end the complaining. It's yours to take charge of, and simply deciding to change the way you treat your body will get the process moving. 

What matters the most to you?

3 comments:

  1. What matters to me are my kids, my hubby, my good friends, and of course, our health. Thanks for the reminder.

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  2. Wow, this was powerful! I am going to print this out and post it next to my computer at work so the next time I start to work through my lunch hour instead of going to the gym, I will read this and then pick up my gym bag and head out the door! Thank you!

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