Dear Doctor,
Celebrating Memorial Day is such a mixed bag, especially during wartime –
besides the burgers and beer, it brings up the bereaved parents, the untimely
deaths, and the barbaric methods we default to in order to address our
differences. At the same time, it is a chance for us to acknowledge higher
virtues like courage, leadership, valor, sacrifice, patriotism, pride and
humility.
In a seemingly unrelated story, thirty-three year old ex-major league pitcher
Geremi Gonzales died yesterday, struck by lightning on a beach in his native
Venezuela.
Dying heroically while fighting for a just cause is honorable indeed, and we
have had to call upon noble warriors throughout history to do their deeds in the
name of good. The unfortunate outcome, though, is only slightly less distasteful
than a fluke seaside tragedy – dead is dead, and somewhere a baby sleeps on her
mama’s tear-stained pillow, never to know her daddy.
A “random” lightning strike, or a grenade in a foxhole – either way, someone is
gone, and someone a few feet away escapes unharmed. Such cosmic rhythm is beyond
our comprehension, based either on some Divine organization or on a series of
entropic physicochemical events going to completion, or both, depending where on
that continuum you sit, but I can surmise one distinction – our existence is
fragile, and you never know when your time is up, so you’d better live your life
to the fullest.
It’s intimidating to think that just around any corner could be your
unpredictable demise, and those who focus on that are unhappy and frightened
most of the time. Ironically, recognizing the vulnerability of being human
actually adds seasoning to life, up to your tolerance, whether it’s a roller
coaster ride, hang-gliding or simply being an engaged observer.
But those higher virtues, well, if we can find a way to explore them without the
disadvantages of war, we’d probably be better off. But without quantum shifts in
our thinking, we’re still pretty far away from that – and that is why we must
usher in a quantum shift in our thinking. You’ve heard me paraphrase Einstein
many times, that we can’t solve the problems of today with the same level of
thinking that caused them – we must create a new reality where the problem no
longer exists. That can only be an invitation to build an improved society,
where we settle our differences civilly, and where health and wellness are the
norm, not the exception, not only physically, but psychosocially and
spiritually.
Where is the Gandhi, the Mandela, the Mother Teresa we need to manifest a
loving, peaceful resolution to this horrible mess we’ve made? Who will step
forward to lead us out of the darkness? And in microcosm, where is the brilliant
wellness leader who will inspire our culture to accept responsibility for its
own health, and spearhead the movement back to things natural? Is it you?
I for one am tired of the violence and misery, on the battlefield and in the
ravages of the human body, mind and spirit. Maybe someday Memorial Day will be a
time to remember war as a long-past sign of human immaturity, a symbol of our
evolution, and a reminder to live well and keep everlasting peace.
Dr. Dennis Perman, for The Masters Circle
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