Spiritual Reflections on Living With Traumatic Brain Injury

A Half Empty Glass

January 3, 2014

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I hate when someone says, “You should be grateful you can do as much as you can for many TBI survivors would love to be in your shoes.” I can’t help moaning about my difficulties and watching others around me who do not have them. For this reason, I often dislike statements like the one on the right.  However this time it was just what I needed to read.

It occurred to me yesterday that two thirds of my life is over. I don’t want to spend what I have left of it worrying about what people think of me or comparing myself to others. I like my life. I really do and it’s a waste of the years I have remaining to moan about what I’ve lost.

In a sermon during Advent, Mark Ramsey reminded us that living in this moment – in faithful trust – is a spiritual struggle. We spend too much time thinking about something that has already happened or trying to control the future. It really is a spiritual struggle and one I want to take on this year.

I appreciated his suggestions for things to do as we trust. First you act’ Then you imagine a world of God’s justice and peace. In addition, you pray and you sing. The hardest thing for me in that list is acting especially when I don’t know what God is calling me to do. I think what he means is to do something – anything – even if you don’t know what to do. I have a tendency to sit around waiting for something to happen.

I’ve spent the last month sort of withdrawing from life. I had hand surgery the beginning of December and it’s taken a little while to get my energy back. I’m glad I stepped back for I feel more energized now. I have to be careful how I use that hand which is a bit of a challenge since it is my dominant one but not being able to use it has forced me to slow down. So now I am ready to act as I imagine, pray and sing.  It really doesn’t matter if my glass is half empty or half full. Two-thirds of my life is over so I’d better begin my spiritual struggle of living in the moment.  Who knows how many moments I have left?

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