
Today marks day five of the flu for me. My eyeballs still hurt, and my throat is more sore than yesterday. When I eat, it’s like swallowing gravel. That being said, I “may” be getting better. I’m not nauseated. I have more energy than I did yesterday. I took out the trash this evening.
The big news, however, is that I washed myself. That’s right, I took a shower. I even shaved. I don’t mind saying it wasn’t easy and took all the effort I could muster. It felt like a competitive sport. As a matter of fact, since I ran out of hot water mid-shave, I should probably get a medal in the Winter Olympics.
Marcus Coker scores the bronze in bathing!
It’s amazing to me how quickly a person’s standards can change. Like, taking a shower really does feel like a big accomplishment to me. A week ago I wouldn’t have thought anything about it, but a week ago I wasn’t flat on my back with a five-day flu either.
Now I’m worn out. Exhausted. The internet is slow, and my patience is gone. (Way gone.) I feel like crying. Or screaming. So many other things in my world aren’t working, and now this. Sometimes life is too much. I probably need a nap.
When I told my therapist I wouldn’t be in this week because I had the flu, she said, “Take good care.” I appreciate the adjective, good. It reminds me to be especially careful with myself, to adjust to my moment-to-moment needs. To me this means that it’s okay that one day taking a shower isn’t a major undertaking and the next day it is. There’s no point in trying to impose yesterday’s standard upon today because they’re two different days, two different standards. As I see it, taking good care means doing the best you can right here, right now. And in this moment, taking good care for me means wrapping this up, taking a nap, and being more than okay with that.
Quotes from CoCo (Marcus)
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We may never be done, but that doesn't mean we'll never be complete. And surely we are complete right here, right now, and surely there is space enough for the full moon, for you and for me, and all our possibilities.
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