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Dr Russ Blog - Attitude of Gratitude – Part II
Attitude of Gratitude – Part II
Created on 12/17/2009
I’d not heard from my old friend in some time. He lives over 2,000 miles away and we are each graciously understanding of each other’s time constraints, happy to touch base whenever the time feels right.
But then I learned that he has been ill for the past few months, having received a harsh diagnosis with a harsher prognosis. I spoke with him this week. As I made the call I didn’t know what to expect from the voice on the other end of the line – would there be tears? Anger? Disbelief? A combination of all?
What I heard was calm.
He shared the story of his recent health journey with me, how the diagnosis was made, how he spoke with his loved ones about it, and how he quickly learned a hard fact that, for him, actually made things easier.
The fact?
That he is ultimately not fully in control of his life. Certain aspects, of course, but not his life in totality. And that understanding has given him something else – a sense of peace, grounded in gratitude.
Gratitude? GRATITUDE?!
Yes. He is grateful for all he has had in his life, for all he has taken in, for love and family, for beauty, and now for the recent experiences that often times leave him still, quiet, and simply thinking. He is remarkably at peace.
It was an amazing phone call, one that left quite an impression on me. Challenged to his core, my friend found his foundation in gratitude, and through it he has a newfound sense of peace.
Many of us, myself included, are blessed with good health and relative abundance. Even so, peace can seem elusive in this crazy world of ours. Yet my friend, my sick friend, seems somehow at peace.
I don’t know the full extent of the lesson here, but I do know that gratitude heals.
My wish for you at this Christmas and Chanukah season, and beyond, is without being humbled by illness or tragedy like my friend, that you have reason to begin and end each day with gratitude. In so doing may you then receive and spread one of life’s greatest healing gifts – peace.
And in so doing, may you all be well.
Dr. Russ
** Information on this web site is provided for informational purposes only and is not intended as a substitute for the advice provided by your physician or other healthcare professional. You should not use the information on this web site for diagnosing or treating a health problem or disease, or prescribing any medication or other treatment. **
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