To All Who are Feeling a Little Achy Today.
The past few days I've felt logy and my bones ache. "Old age ain't
what it's cracked up to be", I groaned to Cathy. She just smiled and
later in the morning she sent me a copy of a short article I had
written some several years ago. If you're really, really good and eat
all your breakfast, I'll share it with you.
Carl Jarvis
*****
It's What You Do With What You Got
By
Carl Jarvis
“What an absolutely glorious spring day”, I sighed, chomping down on a
big slice of hot banana bread oozing in butter.
“It could be a little warmer and I wouldn’t complain,” grumbled
Winston, , the Wonder Cat, as he sprawled out on the warm deck.
In case you’ve not met him, let me introduce Winston. He appeared out
of the forest some years back, looked our house over and decided that
it would do him just fine. Something had chomped off his tail and
done a little damage to his hip, and he was covered with ticks and
fleas. But Winston was a survivor and we opened our door and our
hearts to him, after a trip to the Vet, of course.
Winston was lean, sharp eyed and quick in those days. Now, glaucoma
has claimed his eyesight and too many late night snacks have fluffed
up his soft black fur to a round 25 pounds.
“I should be out here with the brush axe clearing the tall weeds on
the water tank trail”, I mused.
“Why would you want to do that? Just relax and enjoy the sunshine”,
Winston said, rising up and giving a big stretch.
“Well, I used to be out early in the morning cutting up fire wood,
clearing the brush along the road and filling pot holes. I just feel
guilty sitting here doing nothing.”
“So what’s so wrong with doing nothing?” Winston purred, trying to
clambor up into my lap.
“Look at you,” I told him, “You have gotten so fat you can’t even hop
up on my lap or the bed without help”. Don’t you miss those carefree
days when you could leap into the air after the butterflies and chase
squirrels up the trees?”
Winston began kneeding my expansive stomach until I grabbed both of
his paws. “That was then,” he said, trying to get around my hands,
“And this is now. Sure I had good times. But I was young and agile
back then. I’d kill myself if I tried doing that today.”
“But I can’t help thinking how it was just a few short years ago,” I
complained. “I could walk for miles without tiring , cut up fallen
trees and pull the logs down where we could cut them up for fire wood,
and still have enough energy to go out for the evening. Getting old
just isn’t what it’s cracked up to be.”
“If you ask me,” Winston said, beginning to do his housekeeping while
perched on my lap, “If you ask me, you are spending far too much time
missing yesterday. You’re going to wake up one fine day and realize
that you’ve missed today.”
Winston hopped down and waddled over to a spot on the deck that had
been warmed by the sun, sprawling out full length. “Yes,” he yawned,
“Those were good times, and I did enjoy every minute. But today is
good times, too. I would rather focus on the joy of being here now,
than to become frustrated wishing I could go back in time.” Winston
looked up at me and then closed his eyes. As he drifted off to sleep
he murmered, “Remember, it’s what you do with what you got that
counts.”
I considered the words of Winston, the Wonder Cat as I reached for
another tasty slice of banana bread. “you know”, I said to myself, “
I think you’ve got something there my chubby little buddy. I’m going
to start right now to enjoy today for all that it is, and with all
that I have to give it.”
