Perspective

Last night G told me about an accident where a man was standing above an auger, cleaning it off, and fell in. In the accident, the man lost both of his legs. 

Today, I have been overwhelmed with gratitude for my body and the abilities that I have. Sometimes I get down on myself because I don't have a perfect model body, but then I take a step back and realize what I do have. 

I woke up this morning and went for a beautiful run with my friends. I could literally go for as long as I wanted to run. No aches, no pains, no burning in my lungs, nothing. In all respects, my body worked perfectly. It really is a miracle. 

A couple hours later, an elderly couple showed up to buy a kitchen table that I had listed in the classified ads. They came in a car, but wanted to take the table. I told them that I could drive it to their house in my truck. It felt so good to be able to run out to the shop, grab the right tools, and remove the top of the table. Again, it felt good to be able to carry all the parts out with the elderly gentleman and place them in the truck. I jumped from the bed of the truck to the ground, up and down again probably half a dozen times with ease. I was reminded again how blessed I was when I heard the lady comment softly, "I sure am glad you're so agile."  I nearly had to wipe tears from my eyes. I am glad too, beyond words. 

It reminds me of a conversation I had with my mom not too long ago. She has had problems with her feet all of her life. She remembers in college having major problems walking to class, the pain in her feet never subsiding enough for comfort. She learned to compensate and deal with the pain for many years, but had to undergo multiple surgeries on her feet, until finally, the large toe joint in each of her feet had to be replaced. This made the pain tolerable, but her feet have never worked like they are supposed to work. This has been a hard trial to her most of her life. Her feet have never worked well for her, but they are cute feet. 

Sounds funny, I know. But I sometimes look at my feet and groan a little bit. I totally got my dad's feet. They aren't pretty. :). (Sorry dad...I love you lots and lots still. :). They're skinny, bony, callously, and the blood veins bulge out. Needless to say, they are not pretty. BUT...they work. And they work WELL. 

I can't ever remember a time when my feet have held me back from anything that I wanted to do. I played sports in high school.  I love to run and play with my kids in the backyard. I jump on the trampoline. I exercise 5-6 days a week, running, biking, taking classes, and swimming. We love to go hiking as a family. Many times, I throw one of the kids on my shoulders when they get tired and carry them the rest of the way. 

Today, I am grateful for my body. Every bit of it. Every imperfect curve, unique lines, my height, my weight, my bones, muscles, tendons and ligaments, that work together so well, everything. I am so happy that I can stand, walk, jump, and live. What a beautiful blessing!