I was driving down the road the other day when a blind man suddenly stepped out in to the road and started tapping his stick in all directions. He appeared confused and anxious to get back on the pavement and as I drove towards him I realised that he was in serious danger of being hit by an oncoming bus. I stopped the car without thinking twice and after putting on the hazard lights, ran over to the man and gently guided him back onto the pavement. I asked him if he needed any further help in getting home but he said that he was fine and that he had simply become confused and lost his way. I left him with a heavy heart and realised that a bus and several other cars that had been waiting for me to get out of the way, hooting their horns in irritation for being held up for a few seconds. As I drove away, I continued to think about this blind man and how my eyes had given him sight for a few moments and helped him find his way back to safety. I felt both happy to have been there for him and also sad for his apparent vulnerability, something that he has to live with every day of his life. I also wondered whether one of the angry drivers who were obviously irritated by my audacity to stop traffic, would have done the same...would they have gotten out of their car and helped this man to safety or would they have simply hooted their horn and told him to get out of their way...funny how we create scenarios in our heads involving complete strangers and their possible reactions to an event, wondering what would have happend had you not been there....the what if's of life.
I was actually on my way to pick up my daughter from school at the time and I told her about what had happened and how I felt really sad for this man. She listened and was quiet for a moment before saying. "We are all like blind people sometimes mummy, we sometimes get lost along the way"...how true. There are times in all of our lives when we get lost along the way. Maybe we made a bad decision or a bad choice and it left us in darkenss for a while, confused and un-sure which way to turn. Finding our way back onto the right path is not always easy. It is our determination to get there that matters. Whether it be your personal life, your career or your quest for optimal health and fitness, the process is the same. Accept that you got lost and then find your way back to where you wanted to be or move on to somewhere new.
In terms of people's health and fitness goals, taking a wrong turn on your journey or getting lost along the way is no major catastrophe. We are not helpless nor are we victims when it comes to our health issues. Once you take control and responsibility of what you do, what you eat and how you live, there should be no reason for you to get lost at all. Being truely blind is a handicap but watching a blind man find his way around town with the aid of a stick is proof to us all that we have the power to get to where we want to go regardless of the barriers that lie before us.
"Challenges are what make life interesting;overcoming them is what makes life meaningful." Joshua Marine
In health, Tamara
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