In her 1970 folk-rock classic “Big Yellow Taxi,” singer Joni Mitchell asked the wistful rhetorical question, “Don’t it always seem to go that you don’t know what you got `til it’s gone?” She may have been lamenting about creeping suburban sprawl, but her question could be applied to any number of things in our lives including youth, finances, or leftover Halloween candy.
Friend, how did you know? After a chunk of the last two years with searing pain down my left leg and numbness in my left foot. After noting I was highly unstable in my lumbar spine, I opted for spinal fusion while I was still relatively younger(ok, I’m 63 --but younger than 68 or in my 70’s) and up to the rehab. I’m nearly 2 weeks out and had my first bad postop day yesterday. It’s been contact with my friends and the care of my husband, all of whom are “Jesus with skin on” for me. While praying and reading have been very difficult, I’m trying to rest in this “no” season and look for the “yeses”; a visiting friend opened my eyes to some activities to continue while I wrestle with pain and relative immobility. I do hope I haven’t lost too much, but there was more to gain with surgery than without, and spiritually hope to regain strength and faith during this season of life.
So sorry for the suffering you've experienced, and are now facing the discouragement of a hard healing and rehab period. Pain seems to blot the sunshine from our lives, doesn't it? Peace to you as you journey forward day by day. Hoping you will experience relief soon.
Love this topic. It's unfortunate we rarely learn from our elders. Instead we most often learn by doing. Yet, once we 'do' our 50th birthday, some things are not easily undone. Regardless, I still choose to live by one of my favorite sayings, "It's never too late to live happily ever after." I do all I can to engage a healthy lifestyle and take time to appreciate the little things I missed when my life was passing by at break-neck speed. Your topic re-affirmed my focus and the importance of saying 'Yes' prayerfully.
It's amazing how quickly our life passes. I had 6 children over 20 years, and I felt it was gone in a flash. Yet now, I'm seventy and it feels the same. All those Grands grow quickly! We had a lot of health issues last year, and my husband had a double bypass. It was discouraging. The mindset was--is this what the rest of our lives is going to be about? I know we can leave this earth at any age, but just thinking the possibility of 20 years or less is daunting. I'm so glad you talked about this.
Thanks so much for reading. I agree it does feel like life is going by SO fast. I've been dealing wit chronic health issues for more than 20 years now and on my bad days, I do find myself wondering what's this going to be like when I'm 80?
Friend, how did you know? After a chunk of the last two years with searing pain down my left leg and numbness in my left foot. After noting I was highly unstable in my lumbar spine, I opted for spinal fusion while I was still relatively younger(ok, I’m 63 --but younger than 68 or in my 70’s) and up to the rehab. I’m nearly 2 weeks out and had my first bad postop day yesterday. It’s been contact with my friends and the care of my husband, all of whom are “Jesus with skin on” for me. While praying and reading have been very difficult, I’m trying to rest in this “no” season and look for the “yeses”; a visiting friend opened my eyes to some activities to continue while I wrestle with pain and relative immobility. I do hope I haven’t lost too much, but there was more to gain with surgery than without, and spiritually hope to regain strength and faith during this season of life.
So sorry for the suffering you've experienced, and are now facing the discouragement of a hard healing and rehab period. Pain seems to blot the sunshine from our lives, doesn't it? Peace to you as you journey forward day by day. Hoping you will experience relief soon.
Love this topic. It's unfortunate we rarely learn from our elders. Instead we most often learn by doing. Yet, once we 'do' our 50th birthday, some things are not easily undone. Regardless, I still choose to live by one of my favorite sayings, "It's never too late to live happily ever after." I do all I can to engage a healthy lifestyle and take time to appreciate the little things I missed when my life was passing by at break-neck speed. Your topic re-affirmed my focus and the importance of saying 'Yes' prayerfully.
Yes! Slowing down a bit does help us to appreciate the little things we missed when we were running in fifth gear!
It's amazing how quickly our life passes. I had 6 children over 20 years, and I felt it was gone in a flash. Yet now, I'm seventy and it feels the same. All those Grands grow quickly! We had a lot of health issues last year, and my husband had a double bypass. It was discouraging. The mindset was--is this what the rest of our lives is going to be about? I know we can leave this earth at any age, but just thinking the possibility of 20 years or less is daunting. I'm so glad you talked about this.
Thanks so much for reading. I agree it does feel like life is going by SO fast. I've been dealing wit chronic health issues for more than 20 years now and on my bad days, I do find myself wondering what's this going to be like when I'm 80?