Celebration

It's a birthday day. My wife's birthday is today. Some years ago, I came upon a song by Paul Westerburg: "A good day". He has a line that says "A good day is any day that you're alive". Perhaps it should have sunk in earlier since I see so much death in my profession. We should keep awareness of death. Death is always close. I began a practice of imagining the death of my loved ones each night before bed. Then, I can wake up and find out that they're still alive. Each day they live is a great blessing. Since that time I can say with honesty that there hasn't been a single day that I haven't been thankful that she's alive. It helps me love her better. I know that she may die today. I know that she is the most precious "thing" in my life. So when I worry about nonsense like money, prestige, success, aggravation, unpleasant toxic people, medicare, the broken health care system, the crazy country, the unbearable global poverty, the environmental destruction and the future I know that I am not focused on the important reality of life. I forget, of course. I forget often. But I am able to come back sometimes to Truth. According to Ghandi, "Truth is highest God." My wife is the most powerful seeker of truth I know. She cannot permit even microscopic dishonesty. She searches with an electron microscope of emotion for the seeds of dishonesty before ordinary humans can perceive it. And she heals it before it becomes disease. Many centuries ago in China, the emporer asked his physician who was the greatest physician in the land. He said this. "I am well known. I see illness in the body. I use potions and herbs to cure illness and my name is spread far and wide through the land. My brother can see illness in the heart, before it reaches the body. His name is not known outside our village. My father can see illness in one's soul, before it reaches the heart. So his name is not known outside our family." But my wife, she sees illness before it reaches a soul. So her name is unknown. She takes no credit. So there's no hope that she will look back at her accomplishments. She sees none. She has dedicated herself entirely to the protection of the souls of the family. Her success is invisible. The damage that would have occured without her was unseen, since it never came to be. Today is a special day for me to keep in my mind and my heart that I have the privilege to be with her.