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Daily Question, June 6

What parts of my body do I take for granted?

  • Katrina

    I’m with Dusty Su on this one, not that it’s a contest. The autonomic nervous system is an amazing and miraculous system that by virtue of its name holds everything else in its power. And yet, I hardly think of it unless I have a pinched nerve, or my foot goes to sleep. From blinking eyes, to heart beats, to inhales and exhales, to walking into the next room – my body does (mostly) what I need it to do – though a little slower and with more effort than every – all because of this system.

  • RATASHIQ

    What parts of your body do you take for granted? That perhaps would my entire body. I know I need to treat it with my TLC on a consistent basis.

  • Don Jones

    I think my feet. From the moment I throw them out of bed to the moment they hit the sheets at night, upon reflection, I seem to take them for granted.

  • Howie Geib
    I watched a teen rower yesterday. I had arrived at the boathouse just after a group so they were putting in just before me, and as I waited I couldn’t help but marvel at the ease with which the boat was lifted and carried to the water, and lithely folded himself into the seat and rowed away. The grace was palpably different from my own experience and I was caught up by the sense of envy, not so much of the youthful skeletal and muscular array, but the innocence! As any teen male I assume he wa...

    I watched a teen rower yesterday. I had arrived at the boathouse just after a group so they were putting in just before me, and as I waited I couldn’t help but marvel at the ease with which the boat was lifted and carried to the water, and lithely folded himself into the seat and rowed away. The grace was palpably different from my own experience and I was caught up by the sense of envy, not so much of the youthful skeletal and muscular array, but the innocence! As any teen male I assume he was not unconcerned about his appearance as much as the mechanics were something he seemed to have grown into.

    And then I was led (as I often am) on a reverie of my own progression from that intensely awkward age of middle school where my body simply would not stop growing to something more constant in High School. And now, as change once again seems to greet me more often as the mileage takes its toll on my body, it is tempting to harbor a fear of future suffering and loss.

    As I rowed out into the open water and eased into my own pace I certainly was aware of how the gift of the experience was not without risk of ending. And it made the row that much sweeter. The point though is that the joy was tempered by this potential of loss, and while I cannot be certain, presumably that was something my young friend was free of.

    Which brings me to a question about this question: Does taking it for granted necessarily mean something negative? Couldn’t it be something beautiful and be rooted in a deep sense of secure confidence and afford a grounded feeling of peace? Do I have to have the shadow of loss, death I suppose, in every thoughtful experience? I can’t help but conclude I do not. It may be the height of sacrilege in this forum to posit that sometimes the simplicity of unknowing is a fine thing.

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  • Edith

    My lower back. I experience chronic lower back pain after a bad sprain at work in my mid-twenties. Sometimes, if I don’t consciously notice how I am lying or sitting, the pain flares up and I have a hard time getting myself comfortable in most positions. When the pain flares up, I remember that I should not be taking that body part for granted, and to make sure I am aware of my body postures at all times.

  • Kevin

    After seventy-one years of wear and tear on this ever-ageing body, I take no part of my body for granted. Doing so runs the risk of that part screaming for attention!

  • EJP

    My heart and my mind……an amazing team which sustains me both physically and mentally yet I often take for granted.

  • Antoinette

    My breath. Paying attention to the breath is a refuge and helps me from getting carried away by difficult emotions and helps me to relax. It also helps me come home to the present moment to realize that I am alive and that is truly a reason to be joyful.

  • Dusty Su

    The autonomic nervous system, which is internal and unseen. It works so miraculously and without our needing to engage it. I take it for granted, mostly.
    I do a practice with our laughter group in how we thank our body and tell our body that we love it bit by bit. We roar with laughter often when we say we love our bums, our thighs, or bellies, and have to force ourselves to mean it. Yet, I have never led a thank you for the unseen except for our hearts, minds, brain. I will do that next time.

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