Meet the Johann Strauss of the comorbidity waltz
I first encountered the idea of comorbidities a few months before COVID 19 started ravaging through the United States. By the time health experts started talking about the role played by age and by underlying health conditions in shaping the risk for people over 65, I had spent weeks plunging into my own comorbidities. So getting me to agree to live a life of sheltering in place was no hard sell. I had already written three epistles about comorbidity, and I roll them out here.
Why three, you might ask. I did not set out to write three. One would be enough, or so I thought. But when I finished the first, several issues kept nagging me. So, first read the comorbidity waltz (I was still imagining it as a dance!) and go on to the comorbidity slog. The third— “The Pudding is in the Reproof”—came along when I began worrying that perhaps I had gone a little too far.
This marks the first in a series of three. Here is what coming up in future Keyboards:
Keyboard No. 8 will feature “Living with Mild Cognitive Decline,” an account of how I submitted myself and my brain for study at the regional country hospital, and how the diagnosis led me to make deep changes in the way I regard myself and try to organize my life. And yes, of course I had to write two more—one to further plumb the depths, another to acknowledge the new role memory seems to have assumed in my life
Keyboard No. 10 will delve into my deep, nearly lifelong relationship with the saturnine—or sadness, to use a more common word. This subject was more profound than I expected. It too requires three epistles, naturally enough. I never sat down with the idea that I was going to create a trio of triptychs. It just happened that way.
Still, I am spacing these out in consideration of readers because they are a little heavy. I hope the intervening Keyboards (Nos. 7 and 9) will be more “normal,” whatever that means.
This week’s featured epistles
My Co-Morbidity Waltz. This starts out seriously enough, but with a touch of whimsy, almost as if I believe I am making it up..
A Co-Morbidity Slog. Put that whimsy aside: Coping with comorbidities is hard work.
The Pudding Is in the Reproof. Adrienne, my trusty consultant, helps rein me in.
Finding Gratitude in a Neighbor’s Homecoming. A small delight to lighten the load.
A Prayer for this Time of Pandemic. Would you look to 14th-century Tibet for inspiration? Yes!
Mimi Simmons Returns
Mimi Simmons is back with a post called “Light into Darkness.” It is timely. I hope Mimi will be a frequent contributor, though I can well imagine that as she gets used to it, she might decide to set off to start a blog of her own!
A Restrained Huzzah
Ordinarily this section is called A Big Huzzah, but today it’s not exactly a Huzzah—more a recognition of difficulties that can arise in meditation. Hey, let’s just say they do arise. Understanding this is especially important to people who have self-directed meditation programs. Sometimes the devils that attack us carry a warning that we should get a teacher or find a meditation-savvy counselor.
I do not have a teacher, but I do have a friend who serves as a consultant. She has warned me against pursuing particular meditations on my own, and I take her advice seriously.
In this Keyboard, we include a link to an article that Quartz at Work put online. Give it a look and see if you recognize any of your experiences in meditation.
Let’s start a dialogue! There are two ways to take part: 1. Post a comment on the blog! Some readers haven felt frustrated with this, but it’s pretty simple: To comment on the blog: scroll down to the bottom of the post, where there is a comments box. You will have to leave a name in order to comment, but all other information is optional. It will give the option to leave your fb, twitter or Gmail but you don't have to. 2. Consider becoming a contributor. I will consider posts about meditation. I prefer stories over instruction, but I am flexible. I prefer posts of less than 1,000 words. Send your proposed text--or a query—to me at gratitude.kt@gmail.comour text here. Edit to add dynamic values like name, email and more.
Til next time … May you keep meditating, and send lots of love.
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