It’s the simple things in life we forget. As an Occupational Therapist, one of the earliest lessons taught in school is the idea of activity analysis. You choose an activity such as pouring a drink and analyze all the steps to complete the task. This includes the motion of the body. With more detailed information you can include the specific muscles and bones used. Now with knowing this information, let’s do a general activity analysis of the lives of most humans.
For those of us lucky to have daily functioning at full capacity, you wake up, you wash our body, you brush our teeth, you cook/eat breakfast, you drive/commute to work, you drive/commute home, you cook/eat dinner, and you go to bed. Mixed in between this is more individualized activities. For a more detailed analysis, these basic activities include a lot of arm movement (shoulder, elbow, wrist, hand, fingers), bending of the torso (hips, spine, legs), and standing (spine, feet, legs). Not to mention our brain function allows us to participate in all of this appropriately.
There is so much going on in the world around us each day. Have you ever sat down to think and be thankful to not just wake up each day but to be able to do these basic activities. These are the so-called ‘simple things’ in life we must appreciate. We must move around in this world thankfully and not take this for granted. At any moment, these small things can be taken away from us, making the ‘simple things’ a lot harder than we can imagine.
Have you ever stumped your toe and were in pain, having a hard time moving around?
Have you ever slept the wrong way and woke up with a stiff neck? It’s hard not being able to turn your head.
Have you hurt your thumb and realized you can do almost nothing with that hand without being able to use your thumb?
This is life and so many things can happen at a blink of the eye. I’ve worked with people who had these moments of sudden changes. We must strive to live day by day and take life one step at a time. Life is precious and there are so many people who don’t see this as the case. They live with negative energy in their spirit as they move about. Unfortunately, they don’t recognize this until the simple things get taken away. But it’s up to you to navigate this world with your eyes open to all things and be the best person you can be.