Day 1013

Today was a great day for a trio of walks! First comes Sam, followed by Gus. Lilly and Ranger are the final jaunt. I always let Lilly choose her path and today, she decided on the entire journey! At about 19 degrees, we were all giddy with the higher temperatures! It made me realize… everything is relative!

When Mac has had discomfort from a variety of “memories” during his time in the service, he is often asked what his pain level is on a scale from 1 to 10. Typically, we smile and one of us tells the medical personnel that being in a mine explosion is a 10 for him. So, if he chooses a 4, that might be a 10 for others! Everything is relative.

Whether it is a messy house, an issue with plumbing, an arduous task to complete or anything else you might experience, there will always be people who have it better or worse on the “event continuum.” I, for one, sometimes find that hard to remember.

When we are faced with a challenge, it is always easier to look at others who have avoided pitfalls…or, at least didn’t have to crawl up out of the hole as far. My first reaction to a catastrophe, when comparing to other’s experiences, is sometimes “why me?” That thought is always followed by “Why not me?" It seems we all get our share of misfortune in this life.

There is also the realization that, most often, a multitude of others have it far worse. You can always find some peace and gratitude for finding yourself somewhere in the middle of the continuum of challenges…after all, everything is relative.

For now, we embrace the temperatures that are not FRIGID and painful. After all, summer is coming and we get to complain about the heat soon enough!