May 30, 2011

Joy over despair

"And could you keep your heart in wonder at the daily miracles of your life, your pain would not seem less wondrous than your joy," Khalil Gibran.

A tall order for a way to lead one's life, and this sentiment is shared by other great minds.  Humans can reach a point where joy and pain are viewed and experienced similarly.  Detachment and nonjudgment are some of the practices that can get us to the point of seeing all of life as wondrous.  Having lived many decades, I can attest that each decade holds miracles, challenges, changes, hardships and blessings.  One can even view that each day holds these qualities.  Some spiritual teachers say that our suffering is caused by our adding meaning to a situation.  It would seem that when we can fully appreciate this life we have been given to live, we are in as much wonder with the challenges as with the joy.  Certainly, being a dementia caregiver provides us lots of opportunities to experience both.  There are such tender moments, as when Dwane said on Mother's Day that my children were lucky to have me as their mother or when we laugh together over his still-remaining wit.  And there are the challenges.  Is it possible to reach a point where we treasure both?

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