This past couple of weeks has been difficult for some of us. Global sadness flows toward The Vatican at the loss of Pope John Paul II and mixed emotions flow toward Florida as Terri Schiavo’s leaving this world is mourned and celebrated all at once. These two seemingly unrelated events are really very connected in several ways. Both of the lives of these people made all of us look at our own lives from odd angles. They were both examples of global change and their existence definitely has a ripple effect on the rest of the world.
This Pope has been celebrated as being a leader of all and someone who reached out to people from all walks of life with compassion and understanding. John Paul II lost everyone who was important to him by the time he was an adolescent, and grew to be an exceptionally compassionate man from his own personal loss. As the most traveled Pope in history, John Paul II was more real and more visible to people all over the world and was able to spread his message everywhere in spite of the controversies facing the Catholic Church in recent years. He will be missed by Catholics and Protestants everywhere as we mourn his loss and prepare for the Congress of Cardinals to present a new Pope with very large shoes to fill. New challenges for the new leader of the Catholic Church will make people everywhere take notice as the winds of change begin to blow in one of the world’s oldest known traditions.
The life and death of Terri Schiavo forced all of us to look at issues in our own lives that aren’t always pleasant to dissect. How do I want to die? Tragic events led to Mrs. Schiavo’s unfortunate vegetative state with life being supported for her artificially. A once vibrant, thriving young woman was reduced to a completely dependant invalid who was trapped in a body that would not work on its own. She was unable to communicate her wishes to anyone, so her husband was left to make what he believed to be the most humane dignity-preserving decision for her. The only gap in this story is the fifteen years she had to live like that before the decision could be carried out. Millions of people all over the world sought legal advice regarding living wills in the wake of this tragedy. Mine is prepared and copies have been distributed everywhere I thought my wishes should be known in the event of any such tragedy in my life. I would not want the burden of life-or-death decisions to be left on any of my family members. This living will goes against the grain of what most people have thought for years about the time between life and death, but times are different now and this option is one I choose.
If the weight of these events has had any part in your disposition in the past couple of weeks pay attention to the fact that both of these people in their own ways made enormous impact on all of our lives through bringing about global change. Global change can be instigated by someone as common to us as a mother and homemaker or as regal and Chosen as a Polish Cardinal. As a sometimes not-so-humble chiropractor I make an effort to bring about change every day. People who come to my office come looking for physical change most often but sometimes leave with much more than that. We make every effort to educate people about the fact that they can choose what they want for their lives and their healthcare. Alternatives are available for myriads of problems if people would look around.
It is difficult to change generations of thinking that might no longer serve the same purpose they were intended for years ago. I was talking a couple of days ago with a woman who is a financial advisor and is having difficulty teaching people that they don’t have to have the “It’s just a job” mentality. Change is inevitable. Growth is optional. Chiropractors everywhere fight daily trying to teach people that they don’t have to sit back and accept whatever drugs are sent their way and whatever surgeries are recommended. If they have not served you well in the past why not seek an alternative? It is a hard fight, but one I will carry on until I am no longer here. The safety net of the ordinary and the usual is one that is rigid and can become very uncomfortable over time. Stepping out of the proverbial box and making choices that might be unpopular but better for you will make this life and the lives of those after us more pleasant. The National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine says that over 42 percent of adults in America today are seeking alternatives to allopathic medicine and they are teaching their children to follow suit. That means the winds of change are “a’blowin’” in another of the world’s oldest known traditions and that excites me. Be a champion for change in your own circle of influence. Treat your body well.