written by suzie frith
You may look at your life and be dissatisfied. You might hate your job, your education, even your partner, family and friends. It seems there is always something we want to change about our lives. We say things like “if I could just get this done, then I’ll be alright,” or “if I just had this, or if I buy that, things will be good.” But it isn’t the material things that change how we feel, and it isn’t accomplishing tasks that will make us better, because there will always be more things to tackle, and more things to change.
Sometimes, it takes a shock to realise that what we have already is enough. And that it’s not what we own and do that solves our problems, but what is within us. Say, for example, you’re going about your daily business, stressing about life’s menial problems, when you realise you have a problem with your health. It doesn’t have to be anything too detrimental that affects your life, all it takes is a change in your usual life to realise how good you had it before.
Ask Emma, for example, she is a young professional aged 27 living in London, and she never expected to get dry eye syndrome at her age. She said “I was unhappy with my life before, even though I have a stable relationship and can pay rent on a flat, my career has never fulfilled me – I never was in a job or studying something that I loved.” What’s more, Emma explains that she doesn’t like London; “it’s too big and polluted, I rather be in the countryside.”
Then, a depressing reality hit, she developed a disease that most people don’t get until they’re 80-years-old. Dry eye syndrome is a disease that causes extremely dry eyes, feelings of grittiness and soreness, burning and redness within the eye. Ironically, it cannot be seen by outsiders, but only felt by the person carrying the problem.
Then, a depressing reality hit, she developed a disease that most people don’t get until they’re 80-years-old. Dry eye syndrome is a disease that causes extremely dry eyes, feelings of grittiness and soreness, burning and redness within the eye. Ironically, it cannot be seen by outsiders, but only felt by the person carrying the problem.
Now, even though Emma’s condition isn’t the same as losing a limb, or developing something life threatening, it has still made a noticeable dent in her life. She explains that her eyes are never comfortable anymore –“there is always some pain, they’ll never feel the same again.” This problem has affected other aspects of her life, including her relationship with her boyfriend, and her work (she cannot look at a computer screen for long).
And now, it seems that complaining about how things were before was pointless. When you gain a real problem, something that affects the machine that moves you, it is a lot more serious. So, appreciate what you have, because sometimes, you can lose what you took for granted.
Comments