Someone Always Has It Worse...

Last night, after dinner, I got horrendous heartburn. Like, awful, searing, incredibly painful, want to pass out, kind of heartburn. It was a doozy. I get heartburn from time to time, only I don't get it like the rest of you--no, I get "heartburn" in my sternum, and when I do--it doesn't so much "burn" as it does feel like someone is literally twisting my sternum and stomach up and wringing it out to dry. It is awful. Sometimes, I even pass out. Not for very long and I know that's not normal, but it's only for about three seconds or so and then I come right back too. Anyhow, after the hour-long heartburn ordeal--which lasted about 20--40 minutes more than it usually does, I felt 110% better. It always wears me out when I get it, but oh the difference between how I feel when I have it and how I feel when I don't--night and freakin' day!

I got up after the heartburn was over and went on about my evening. Colin asked "how do you do that?" I said "because I had heartburn, I wasn't dying. Life goes on."

I've always been resilant like that, I guess. Don't get me wrong, when I do have heartburn like that, I kind of want to be put out of my misery, but I've dealt it with my whole life so I know how to handle it. I know my body well, so I feel it coming.

And besides, someone always has it worse than I do.

That lesson, that someone always has it worse than I do, is a HUGE lesson to learn in life and one that I was taught that lesson from a very early age.

It's not that I wasn't allowed to acknowledge my pain (physical, emotional or otherwise) it's that after I acknowledged it, I was highly encouraged to move on--because yes indeed, someone (lots of someones actually) always had it worse than me.

People without limbs or fingers or who literally can't physically speak. People who are deaf or blind or whatever. I'm not taking pity on them, because I've known each of these types of people and THEY are the amazing ones! They are usually always kind and considerate and incredibly, willfully strong. So, I'm not taking pity on the the people who, I think, have it worse than me, it's just that I'm able to see (most days) how damn good I have it.

Someone always has it worse than I do.

For instance, I read yesterday that Martin Shorts' wife just died. They were married for 30 years and have three or four children--the children are grown, but still. I can't imagine being married for that long and then suddenly losing my husband. Granted, that's the vow we all take "'till death do us part," and 30 years is a good long, time. But, that's just it. That was 30 years of love and caring and arguing and partnership and parenthood. 30 years of affection, compromise, respect, laughter, sleeping together. Thats' a lot. She was only 58 years old, that's quite young to die now. I was so sad when I read it, it just broke my heart. I know death is a part of life, and apparently, Martin Short has had multiple deaths of loved ones his life, but its just sad. And it sucks. I can't imagine how him and his children are feeling now. I am definitely praying for all of them. See, they all have it worse than I do right now.

Another group of people who have it worse right now is that group of thirty-three men trapped in a mine in Chile. They're sincerely trapped, in a shallow mine cave some hundreds of feet below the ground. According to this article on Yahoo! the miners have a carved out a small space for themselves where they can rest, play cards and walk around (in circles, I'm assuming, and I'm not trying to be funny). They say they meet everyday for "counsel and conference" to make decisions as a group. But with the tempratures reaching 85* Fariegnheight and no viable form of rescue until possibly December (yeah, as in FOUR MONTHS from now), my, my, my. It'll be a miracle if they all don't go crazy. Seriously, I'm not trying to be funny, I can't imagine being literally trapped ANYWHERE for four months. Or even four days. They are being fed food and water which is being sent down by a tiny tube and also oxygen, so that's good. They're not going to starve, or die of thirst, but still. I'm thinking, right now, these brave men definitely have it worse than I do.

Who else has it worse? Any homeless or hungry person. Any one of the 5,000 victims of Hurricane Katrina who are STILL displaced, five years AFTER the tragic hurricane that almost destroyed the Gulf Coast.

I learned on the news last night all about the progress--and lack of progress in some areas--in the five years since Hurricane Katrina. And much like 9/11/01--it affected me deeply. I wrote a few entries about it back then, and it still pangs me today. Can you imagine being literally displaced from a real home for five years? That's half a decade. See, they have it worse than I do right now.

Don't get me wrong, there are plenty of people who have it better than I do right now too. You know, millionaires, ANYONE vacationing in Italy, any guy or gal sittin' on a white sandy beach listening to the beautiful sounds of the ocean sitting right in front of them. Anyone whose beloved pet is still alive and with them. (I still miss Nellie, so much).

But, overall, I think for everyone else--we're about even.

It's important to remember that no matter how bad things get, and I'm NOT tempting fate here--someone always has it worse than I do.

Remembering that solid, truthful lesson is just one way of experiencing love and hope and gratitude. And as long as you still have those--you're doing pretty well for yourself.

Thank You, Lord, for reminding me that someone does have it worse than I do, and that I can send those someones love and light and hope. I can be grateful for every blessing in my life based on the sheer fact that it is in my life to begin with. What a powerful lesson to learn and know and live.

So, dear, readers, this is what I'm asking of you this weekend: even if you don't get the exact weekend you want, even if you can't cram all the fun into the next three days that you'd like to cram in. Just be grateful for what you do have. Look around, try to visibly notice how good you have it, and every time you see someone who has it worse than you do--thank your Higher Power for your fortune, and bless the less fortunate. We all need more love and blessings in our lives, as well as the ability to see them, because again, as long as we can acknowledge those--we're one step ahead of the madness that often ensues negative attitudes.

Have a great weekend, everyone, and enjoy the second to last weekend of summer!

In Light N' Love,
-Sarah Liz :)

**Update @ 10:52pm--PST. I'm watching a special on 20/20 about Albinism. People who are Albino and how they're treated in America, and how they're treated in Africa. Let me just say, I know what it's like to be sick, I know what it's like to be vastly different from everyone else. My height, my voice, my scars--they all make me different. But for some reason, I always knew I was worthy and valuable regardless of what other kids said--and believe me, they tried to convince me otherwise many times. The kids Albino Kids in America are shunned by their peers and sometimes forced into a recluse lifestyle. That saddens me. Personally, I figured if I stopped going to school at any one time, than the mean kids won--and that is something I was not going to let happen. Anyway, the Albino People in Africa--oh, it is heartbreaking. The Albino People in Africa are often killed--or slain for their body parts because in parts of Africa (Tanzania, especially) Albino Body Parts are thought to have "magical powers" and are traded on the Black Market for a lot of money. We are talking real, live human body parts ripped from their original bodies while the person is alive and awake. I can't imagine the horror of that, and to be honest, I don't want to either. One Albino woman's arms were ripped right off her body in the middle of the night. Just cut right off and she was left for dead. She didn't die, amazingly enough, but lived the next three years without either of her arms. See, THAT'S what I mean, THAT'S sort of why I don't complain too much (if I can help it), THAT'S why I go around saying how beyond blessed I am--because I am. I HAVE my two arms, she didn't. Can you honestly imagine what it would be like to live life (all be it not independtly) without arms? Or without legs? Our service men and women do it all the time. This Tanzanian Woman got to come to America and get fitted with prostetic arms, thank goodness, but in doing so, she had to RE-LEARN EVERYTHING! She had to re-learn how to pick up a simple glass of water, how to pour that glass of water, how to write, how to hold a book and turn its pages. How to reach for something in a cabinet, how to even open the door. That's amazing! And most of us, granted not all of us, but most of us--we can do all of the above every day of our lives and we often don't even think about it. It's SUCH a GIFT to have four limbs that work they way you want/need them too. THAT is why I am so intent on this message today: no matter how bad you may think you have it, there IS always someone who has it worse than you do. And after watching a story like that, I am thanking my lucky stars (and the good Lord) for every properly working, moving muscle/limb/finger/toe in my body! Things like that just put all my problems completely into perspective. Wow! God Bless that lady, who by the way, is now a Seamstress back in Africa--she laughed all the home--simply amazing!