By: LPJ
I just came out of hiatus. Not a pleasant one. It was a tug-and-pull kind of a battle for a week and a half. The nasty flu strain and me, at war with each other. I pulled hard, and here I am, without the fever but fighting an annoying cough and congestion. Like they always say, flu shots are for certain strains, but not for all. Whatever I caught certainly avoided the shot’s target. I’m just grateful that I’m feeling so much better now … thank you for wondering.
Strangely, being sick carries a few positives. It forces one to slow down and rest, to get enough sleep, and drink a lot of water or juices. That’s just what I did. On the negative side, I could hardly eat. My appetite was gone. Bitter taste stayed in my mouth. And for me not to be able to eat when I love food is a huge downside. The fun for eating was gone for me, as I struggled through the fever. Weakness in my body settled like a most unwelcome visitor. But to compensate for lack of food, I almost binged on chocolate truffles. I needed the sugar – and I actually loved it. The sweet in my mouth dominated over the bitter.
A couple of days ago, my appetite came back, an indication that I’ve bounced back. Now, I’m all ready to pounce on my pot stickers, egg rolls, crab fried rice and wanton soup (that I ordered from DoorDash, the food delivery service). Yes, I’m back!
What was so different about this latest experience of being under the weather? I’ll tell you what – it was like feeling knocked out every day, and struggling to get up only to find that the whole world was dismally spinning. So, I tried to stay down instead. Dizziness each day of the week was the hardest to cope with. I tried to read, but couldn’t. Tried to do a very simple stretching and bending exercise but couldn’t. Tried to eat more than a few spoonful of porridge, but couldn’t. Tried to watch TV, but couldn’t. Tried to write or blog, but couldn’t. Struggled to think about work and projects, but couldn’t. I even tried to count my fingers and toes, to make sure they were still there. I stopped counting at eight – kind of silly, isn’t it? But I didn’t give up — tried to listen to my favorite oldies station – ah, that I could do, even with my eyes closed. Couldn’t resist rhythm in me when I listened to music, so I made dance moves, even in my imagination. Or maybe, I did sway and jerk my shoulders a bit, even syncopated with my feet for a gentle shimmy. Guess what – I felt good. Dancing for me, virtual, imagined or real, drives the voodoos away, That sick feeling disappeared, kind of.
One thing very important when I was sick – I prayed harder. Prayers beat all the medicine, rest and music, that I believe. In my previous blog about logic and equation in the world., I mentioned that the Master’s intent is a balanced equation in the universe, for order, sanity and peace; and when it’s not, we pray harder. Well, my equation was not balanced for a while. I teetered, and I was off. So I prayed harder. Prayer comes with hope, and with hope comes an outlook that brightens the darkest corners of our mind; it even brings lightheartedness and liveliness to our bodies. I was sick; I battled with the flu and the blues. In the battle, I prayed hard. And thank God, I’m back!
And back I am, as I eye my pot stickers, wanton soup, egg rolls and crab fried rice, tantalizing right before me, waiting to be devoured! I can eat again!