Every keystroke hurts. Every muscle and joint hurts. My ribs and abdominal muscles are in agony. My head hurts so bad, thoughts are running along pain nerves. All day in pain waiting for the next retch. It is horrible what a microscopic virus can do to your body and the manner in which it does it. But there is great value in this, two specific lessons everyone needs to learn and keep uppermind as they stroll through life.
One is the fragility of life. This one is more difficult for the young than those who are growing older or those who feel the full heavy weight of age. When you are young, indestructible is the word that best fits the minds of this group. There is generally just so little pain as a part of their lives, that they almost have to generate it. I once asked a Ph.D. psychologist why young people were cutting themselves? She answered, "so that they know they are alive." Different lessons are coming in the future decades of life for this group. Stages that we have all gone through in one form or another.
Two is that no matter how healthy and strong you are, it only takes a small event (bug, virus, ecoli, muscle pull, back strain, car accident, etc) to bring you to a startling halt. This one always surprises me because I am very fit and strong, especially for someone my age. But one small event can bring the strongest of us to our knees and completely humble us..
I guess these two lessons are the different sides of the same coin, that we are all weaker than we suppose. But I believe the converse is also true, that we are far stronger than we know, and it is these weakest moments which help me revel in the strong.
