I am rambling through life enjoying a lovely day thinking it’s going to last forever and then suddenly my neighbor stops me to tell me her woes. These woes begin with a litany of complaints over her sagging health. Meanwhile, I’m bent over a daisy growing between the cracks of the sidewalk and marveling at its fortitude. I even stay in a bent position counting its petals and hoping my neighbor will tire of dwelling on her various illnesses and say something that’s taking place in the present moment, perhaps the moment where a daisy thrives despite the concrete weighing heavy on its roots.
My neighbor paints a vivid picture of her malfunctioning organs. I realize she expects something from me, so I let go of communing with a daisy to address my neighbor’s distress. “Have you tried meditation? It will allow you to remain in a state of peace and possibly give your organs a chance to return to their original state of harmony.”
She looks at me as though I have lost my mind and wanders away when seeing another neighbor bouncing along a dirt path across the street, no doubt, enjoying the summer day. My neighbor hurries to the unsuspecting woman and begins her litany of complaints. I can hear her conveying her disgruntlement over possessing a rancorous gallbladder along with a liver that suffers from a malady the doctors have yet to name.
I continue walking but can’t help pondering people’s need to search for ears that will listen to the condition of their bodies, as though their bodies are stamped with an expiration date and once hitting a certain age considered to be elderly, a much over used word that warps people’s perception of growing old, their bodies will fall into a state of disrepair. I ponder the possibility of eliminating ‘elderly’ from our vocabulary. Would we continue reflecting on the passing of time or would we enjoy the present moment of a summer day?