Hugs Are Magic...

 

Hi! 

"Take care of yourself."

 

Something we say. Kind of like the "How are you?" "Fine, thanks, and you?" thing. 

But, what does it actually mean?

There are those who do everything 'right'. They never drink, never smoke, eat healthily, exercise regularly, and still, and yet, they still end up with illnesses that carry them away. 

There are those who seemingly live without any of these restrictions, these boundaries, these rules, who live active lives well into their golden years. 

Then, there are the rest of us. 

We live imperfect lives, we develop habits that aren't necessarily conducive to encouraging longevity, crossing our fingers that none of them come back to bite us later on. Some of these habits take deep root, others, not so much. We eat healthily, at least some of the time, we have the odd drink, here and there, we exercise on purpose once in a while, but get most of our activity through our day-to-day. 

Stuff can happen to anyone. And it does.

So, taking care of ourselves. What does it mean?

I am far from any kind of expert on the subject, but here's what I think.

We do our best.

What is supposed to be good for us seems to change with every study that comes down the pike. Dairy is good for you, until it's not. Eggs are good for you, then they're not, then they are again. Drink coffee, don't drink coffee. Walking is better than running, or maybe it's the other way around. 

There are a bunch of companies out there selling their potions, their fitness equipment, their high protein, low fructose, gluten-free diet, and fitness flavours of the week. 

Personally, I don't think human evolution works at a pace that warrants all of the lightning round changes. It's impossible to keep up. So, I don't.

No sugar, no gluten, no dairy, high protein, low carb, impossible meat, counting calories, counting steps, tracking micro things... 

While they continue to figure out how to use our natural fear of aging, and watching our bodies do the same, the healthiest thing about them is the profit they turn by stoking our fear of the inevitable.

The truth is this. We all die.

We start to die the minute we are born. 

Taking care of ourselves is broader, deeper, and wider than simply watching what we eat and going for a walk.

Taking care of ourselves means nourishing relationships, feeding them with laughter and conversations about everything and nothing all at once. It means doing what we can to stay on the planet to enjoy those relationships for as long as we can, leaving room for a little cake and ice cream. 

It means taking time to do nothing. Without guilt. We have it drilled into us from the time we start school that doing nothing is a bad thing. I don't think it is.

We can't just be here, on this planet, to work. To work to buy stuff, buy places to put that stuff, fill it, then have to buy bigger places to hold more stuff, only to die and leave behind a big pile of stuff for our loved ones to deal with. 

We can't. That can't be all there is to it. 

When you stop to think about the legacy... the mark you want to leave on the world when you leave it, what does it look like? 

Everyone will have a different answer, as well they should. 

Whatever your answer, let your actions drive you in that direction. 

So, eat the cake. Maybe not every day, but have some.

Listen to your body before it hits you over the head with something big. Listen to the little things.

Laughter is better for you than any flavour of the week.

Our only true legacy lies in the memories we create with the loved ones we will inevitably leave behind. 

Oh yeah, and... Hugs are magic. 

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May we all take a look at what hits hardest when we allow memories of lost loved ones flood in.

May we do our best to leave behind a legacy of happy tears.

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