By: Dr. John Chuback
“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of light, it was the season of darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair.” These are the famous words that Charles Dickens wrote in A Tale of Two Cities, which was first published in 1859 to chronical circumstances in France and England at the end of the 18th century.
It seems those now famous and widely recognized words could have been written today to describe the era of Covid-19. They reflect perfectly how so many of us are feeling inside right now.
That said, as we look back through the countless pages of history, there have been innumerable times when such words would have been apropos. It is for this reason they have resonated so deeply with people over the years. These sentiments speak to the core of the human condition – the essence of the human experience.
Who has not experienced thrilling romances and demoralizing heart breaks? Who hasn’t had glorious days we’d wished would never end, and terrible one’s we were certain we could not endure? Who hasn’t witnessed joyous births yet lost a friend or loved one at too young an age?
The answer is we have all lived through such occurrences – contradictory events at opposite ends of the spectrum of human affairs. All of us old enough to have experienced life in any depth have gone through these kinds of trials, and countless more.
To be frank, none of us asked to be born a human being, or to be born at all for that matter. But the fact remains we were. And, in my personal opinion, we have been blessed to have been so. Life is invariably an epic adventure, filled with triumphs and failures, celebrations and disappointments. It is neither predictable nor certain.
The road of life has ups and downs and twists and turns. There are beautiful views from the road at times, times when we can coast joyfully and easily downhill without any effort whatsoever. Regrettably, there are potholes, traffic jams, car crashes, and washed-out bridges along the road as well. There are long stretches of seemingly endless and exhausting inclines. That’s the way that it is. It isn’t always easy. And it isn’t always hard. We take the good with the bad. It’s called life. It doesn’t come with an instruction manual and it doesn’t come with a guarantee. It just comes. And here we are – in it together.
Accepting this as true, what then can we do to cope with and make the most of this period of illness, uncertainty, anxiety, and hardship? This is a reasonable question under the circumstances. As a physician and surgeon, it’s my professional objective to bring relief to those who are hurting. So, what is my prescription for all of us then? What is my advice as a personal-development and self-help educator?
It’s actually straight forward, as many of the best remedies are. It is particularly important in difficult times such as these that we work hard at remaining positive and optimistic. These are the moments when positive thinking and a good attitude are hardest to summon but add the most value in healing. Anyone can be upbeat and optimistic when things are going their way, the sun is shining, and the birds are singing in the trees. Anyone can run a 5K, do 30 pushups and 100 crunches when they’re slim and fit.
But what about when you’re not at your best? How do you get yourself going then? How do you begin when you’re 50 pounds overweight and you can’t walk up a flight of stairs without getting out of breath? Do you lie down and die? Do you just give up and quit? Of course not. That’s not our nature.
Our nature is to survive. Our nature is to succeed. Our nature is to endure. Our nature is to adapt to and overcome difficulty of unimaginable proportions. Millions of years of evolution, and the powerful life force that resides within every one of us, has made it so. Make no mistake about it – you were designed and built to win. You were engineered to overcome all the problems and obstacles that life throws at you. And in the end, the answers reside in your magnificent mind.
