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| From cradle to grave by George Ricketts |
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| Written by Karen Grunschel | |
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From cradle to grave Time is good to most. The majority of beings (at least in industrial countries) survive their youth and live past the ages of their ancestors. And if we feel bad we maneuver in a world of instant cures and remedies. Whether for a cold or depression, there is something enticing over the counter to take. Medical people prescribe stronger medicines to hasten our return to wellness. An operation, an intrusion in our bodies, can take away pain and potential horrors, and it makes us feel secure that there are few limits to regaining health. We evaluate our condition daily with devices and instruments unknown to previous generations. Our bathrooms take on the aspect of laboratories for laymen scientists and technicians. We learn the vocabulary and skills in handling instruments to regain our chemical or physical balance as we prepare to confront the myriad of physical stimuli emerging from us. We discern and diagnosis glitches in our makeup, our frames, based on information gleaned on the computer, through the TV, from the local pharmacy and from our friends and relatives. We read our hearts, pulses, breathing, muscles and tendons, brain activity and deep within, analyze our bowels and liquids. We pay attention to the slightest changes and sense any discomforts or inordinate activities. We become the interns we watch on TV and educate medical people about our conditions. They either confirm or deny our assumptions. We know that further monitoring of personal data will result in huge bills and hassle. So, we defend our diagnosis by trying to negotiate with the medical world in using information as our passage to further knowledge or ignoring the obvious signs and allowing ourselves to be talked into minor compromises. The fragility of human existence, our mortality, is big news. It is everyman. CNN informs the world community upon the death of one or more of its family. The loss is felt by all. The general media assault us with announcements about the sick and dying as heroic battles facing medical realities: heart disease, cancers, microbes, viruses and even bacteria that destroy our systems. Our organs and bodily architecture become battle grounds in the general public as we identify with this or that celebrity who is suffering from something debilitating or a painful disease. Linked to the unfortunates by our species, we identify and investigate the strange Latin names for the maladies. Every day, victims of something take the fore as we once again become aware of the vulnerability of all and the black and white of life and death. We are left with photos, 8 or 32 mm films, movies, emails of those we remember and loved. Going way back, even European bogs and Egyptian mummies divulge the physical remains of ancient “ancestors”. Like weaving through an obstacle course, we alarmingly pay attention to discernable traps set out to bring us down. Most diseases have causes obvious to others if not ourselves. Heart attacks seem baffling and the most difficult to predict. Who would have predicted the fate of someone with a high profile like Tim Russert. Wow, how did that happen? He was working at a computer one minute, as dedicated and happy as anyone who is totally self-actualizing. No sign, no symptoms, nothing. Then, he is down, an urgent exit from life. Like a well-planted IED, a heart attack destroys without warning, deep in the complex heart area, perhaps caused by strange genes. This sad exit happens all the time to people who aren’t as well known as Mr. Russert. In kitchens, at ball games, in bathrooms and over tea people simply drop dead and they are sorely missed immediately, here one minute gone the next. We can do much to lessen the chances for many of the causes. Prevention of course is the main protection for most human illnesses. Media gurus are constantly expounding on what we can and can’t do to stay healthy and age well. Dr. Andrew Weil’s formula of exercise, diet, meditation and nutrients seems like a smooth transition to ageing. Smoking, drinking, drug taking, being overweight, avoiding stress, and staying away from people who influence us negatively are red lights worth cautioning ourselves against. The evidence is all around to avoid dangerous habits and substances. It seems only fools and those with a death wish would want to smoke or take excesses of alcohol at this point in history. A generation ago, trends and fashions were different and people were less aware of the dangers of life styles that typified our grandparents and then parents. My mother grew up watching her movie stars all smoking. It was the coolest, sexiest thing going. Then and now, protracted use of certain substances and eating certain foods cause all degrees of future problems as ageing complicates the accumulations. Johnny Carson’s single life’s regret was his long time smoking habit. Little did we know at the time that our large steak dinners, martinis at lunch and dinner, tasty fast food non-foods, experimentation with harmless drugs, delicious desserts, and even unhealthy environments of sitting around our poker buddies smoking in our presence would someday come to haunt us. Watching Chinese families eat and celebrate events makes me aware of the dangers of cultural traditions and what people regard as good food and drink. Breaking these bonds with the past is difficult in many countries and “killing me softly” with her food plays in so many cultures and societies. In the tropical climate of the Philippines, middle aged people continue to eat heavy foods without any exercise other than walking to the store or movie. We have to be brave enough to resist social and peer pressures. I argue the need to say “no” to foods that cause side effects later in life if not at present and show people that we can be objective on accepting or declining various foods or drinks. Being offered a cigarette doesn’t mean I have to smoke one. Being toasted with strong Chinese alcohol around the room can be logically refused, one symbolic drink should be enough. I sat at a big round table with politicians and businessmen from China recently, as the politicians forced one “baiju” after another on to the reluctant Hong Kong businessmen who knew they had to drink with the Shandong politicians to be gracious and cultural. One of them looked at me in a pleading fashion as he raised his glass and I felt sorry for him as I could say no as a foreigner and outsider. The world is populated by a majority of humans who are under 30. That makes interests between generations wildly skewed and thoughts of growing old rather distant for most. The younger generations of any nationality know the dangers of all these bad habits and have the ability to make choices. Often, the choice is bad, forced by peer pressure and feelings of “immortality”, managing to upset all those of a later generation close to the individual. There is even a Death Wish in some to resist any rational and practical suggestions for the sake of rebellion and individualism and as a way to “get even” with an adult. Death itself is a goal since all around proclaim life to be traditional and the culturally approved activity, the safe thing to do. To the rebel, the desire to pursue the unknown and undesirable becomes a consideration, a choice. How much punishment a body can take becomes cool and is an entry into one’s in-group. Binge drinking certainly doesn’t make sense, does it? So smoking, drinking, drugs and compulsive eating are taken to extremes. Rebellion is carried out in the home through refusal to do what parents want, on the playground where peers dominate the behavior trends, in classes in defiant works of prose in front of ageing teachers from another generation and in society in general where notoriety and scandal make someone famous or infamous. Some pursue drugs as an experiment like in a chemistry class in which they unfortunately can’t resist the next dosage and get hooked. In hindsight, I can’t understand how I could have been so stupid to allow myself to get drunk and almost pass out several times; smoke Camel, Pall Mall and Lucky Strike cigarettes; drive recklessly under the influence and put my body through various tortures in the name of the youth culture. Ultimately, there seems little that can be done to reverse ageing and the deterioration of the body system in general. Time takes its toll. But because we have lived past the age of our ancestors we have more invested in continued living and good health. Still, we are destined to lose efficiency in most areas of perception and organ use. Limbs begin to ache and pains are felt. Everything about us slows down, loses strength, becomes more susceptible to defending against germs and wear. Small bumps and growths are noted and charted. We are liable to the sins of past behaviors in paying homage to the present condition of our body parts. We feel vaguely vulnerable as we begin the day, by looking in the mirror in the bathroom. Even the emotions expended early in life can cause lasting effects as we stumble into old age. We become good at bandaging or plugging up minor and major physical manifestations as we turn a corner in life. The sudden loss of a bodily function, something taken for granted before, can rush us to the hospital in total panic. Bleeding from a wound or a limb that malfunctions can bring us into the emergency room for instant care. Bells and alarms go off every day over something new that is seen or felt. But overall relief is non-existent as the ageing process takes over and life must be terminated. The goal becomes to maintain longevity and good health through “proper” living skills. After living a while, wanting to live longer becomes a goal. After surviving the obstacles of youth, the older appreciate the chance to continue living. Surviving early death puts us on a treadmill to willingly strive for longer lives. Personally, I remember waking up one Sunday and realizing I had lost the vision in my left eye, a small part of me passing away. There had been signs of a weakening in the eye after cataract surgery but it wasn’t a foregone conclusion that I would have a retinal detachment. The notion of losing vision was a sign of my mortality of course. Nothing can be spared, nothing can be saved forever. To have something as basic and important as an eye flicker and die was a shock. The future of its use was compromised by the Chinese doctor not understanding the seriousness of the situation and giving me drops instead of an operation. If I had been in Chicago I would have gotten immediate care including surgery without it getting lost in translation. At the Chinese Eye hospital in Beijing, I surveyed the hundreds of patients with eye troubles and saw the hopelessness of those from far away who had come to the capital to finally get treatment. They were mostly the ageing and aged. They had finally gotten the money together to take the train into the city to get the surgery they needed. Their prognosis was negative as they had waited too long in most cases and some were looking for a miracle. One young couple I saw were on their hands and knees in the waiting room as the female sat stoically in a chair and showed no vision or emotion whatsoever and her husband and perhaps mother were holding hands in front of her praying emotionally. The young eye surgeon in charge really was a Jesus Christ for many who expected him to perform miracles. He had a look of total calm on his face as he handled the penitents one by one. I thought I saw a halo. However, there are perfectly good things that we can do to gracefully ease into old age. The internet, literature, and modern science are constantly preaching the quality of life issue and what can be done to rescue the body from torments of ageing. The whole vitamin and mineral supplement industry is built on keeping seniors feeling good whether it helps or not. The physical exercise boom is a testimony to the market of young and old wanting to stay physically fit and knowing that exercise is one ingredient in the process. Our diets are constantly being evaluated for positive and negative intake. Thousands of articles, books, videos, tapes, news programs and films are written and made about recipes, diets, organic fruits and vegetables, and how animals are raised and butchered. These are ways of insuring the quality of the foods we eat. Never in the history of man have people been so educated and informed about how to stay healthy and fit as they age. Positive life styles intrude on the back yard barbecues, coffee klutches, birthday parties, large motel buffets, sports activities, and all the ceremonies requiring elaborate menus and foods. Buddhism and other religious practices are brought in to ensure calm and relaxation among those who experience anxiety and stress. These feelings and emotions play roles in our balance or imbalance and we might take on the aspect of highly spiritual beings to train ourselves to “live and let live”, “walk in someone else’s shoes”, “turn the other cheek”, “follow the mean”, etc. as we feel privileged to attain the ages of the elders on earth in any culture. We mustn’t disturb our mental equilibrium by recalling ugly notions from the past or ideas influenced by the media and modern culture in my opinion. Perhaps we should look on life and ageing as running a marathon or climbing a mountain where the distance or height are unknown. So we need to find a pace that is consistent and right for us, so that we can live longer lives. The slow beginnings are when we are just out of the block and getting started and unsure of what pace to set. The later frenetic pace of middle distance is where we go all out, confident in our choice of vocations, settled on family and activities, and anxious to actualize ourselves in the world. Then there is a slowing down, an evening out, as we prepare for the finish and the end of the race or climb. We don’t want to stumble during the race and be forced out by external pressures if we can help it. We pace ourselves through maintaining a balance of sports, work, home life and interests. We monitor our condition through physical exams and self-awareness. We maintain a positive outlook on keeping fit and healthy as part of the pacing process. If we are dragged down by depression, events and circumstances, we have to find a way to get back in the race and maintain our good pace so that we optimize our value unto ourselves and get the greatest distance in life. Medical people hasten to recommend various drugs for what ails us either physically or mentally. What have medicines we’ve ingested during our lives done to us to affect our aging? Are they tipping our natural chemical balance or affecting our organs irreparably? Medicines have side effects and we are victimized by years of casual intakes as we fought off infections and ailments. These potential corrosive agents combine to provide a medical history that no one can write down or quantify. But present in the everyday mundane activities of life are the unpredictable tragedy of accidents and unforeseen blunders. Fate, sorry luck, can destroy the best designs and plans in striving for a long life . When asked at the beginning, Johnny wanted to live to be 100 when he was 5. Jeannie wanted to be 105 when she was 6. What are the odds of them reaching their predictions? That depends on many variables: their parents and the care they get, their own mental attitude towards habits they will form later in life, the country and region of the world they grow up in, the environmental situation they find themselves in daily, the kind of neighbors they have (peaceful or warring), the genes in each that either fight off germs and diseases or don’t, the circumstances that they get into as life continues and the total unknown. No one can foretell the events that happen daily and again grab the headlines dramatically. A majority of people in the world are destined to grow up without sanitation, without food, without proper education or medical care. There are places on earth where walking down the street and a trip to the bakery is an act of bravery. A skiing accident, plane crash, a terrorist attack on the receiving end of some “soft target” can end early life time goals quickly as well. A strong, healthy, classmate of mine jumped out of a window at 32 while on drugs, thinking he was a bird. These events cry out in an unstable world like never before. It can be argued that our media welcomes and contributes to this global chaos by giving prime air time and rushing reporters into harm’s way in acts of reportage heroism. Every day becomes a chapter in a never ending drama to determine where the next tragedy will occur. Now, as we round the corner on ageing, we look back fondly on the days of youth with its reckless fun, and good health, a sense of immortality. We could take two aspirin and relief was around the corner. The greatest pains and medical problems were recorded through hangovers, physical mistakes and excesses or accidents and persistent germs. Now, instead, we are confronted with insurance actuarial tables and health risk percentages. We approach the cliff which looms closer and closer. As I wade out into world where the average age is around 35 or younger in many countries, I get different reactions from its members. People eye me suspiciously, detecting a wobble. I walk slowly and deIiberately as others walk by or into me in their youthful hurry. I get offered seats on public transportation, questions about my capacity to handle loads, and people opening doors for me. Officials give me free tickets to allow me to engage in some activity. They shine a light on my wrinkles, hair loss, stomach structure and face lines. I’m reminded to stand up straight and hold my head up. The novice, the kid, has been replaced by the sage, the senior citizen, the elder, the old man. Entering the “golden years” it all becomes obvious that the end is nearer and the story has an ending. My father and his brothers always used to crack about the “golden years” as not being cut out as they thought they going to be. It becomes all about life’s exit. We don’t dwell on it but how and when? Will it be natural or through some crazy form of disaster, either natural or human. When I think about groups of peoples who have been massacred, ethnically cleansed, destroyed, brutalized and tortured for being a group from a minority, I am awed that I am still around. This was the stuff of newsreels in the last century. The faces of terror and uncertainty or calm and serenity, show how people prepare to leave this reality. Tumbling out of trucks, evacuating buildings, falling into holes, running through fields to avoid bullets and bombs, marks a fast, unplanned end to life. Those awaiting executions or terms spent in hospital beds could prepare in prayer and reflection, surrounded by significant others, while those running from trucks or escaping catastrophes could only react with adrenalin and numbness. The perpetrators in many cases also face violent ends as they receive revenge, experience justice or just gain a conscience and sense of guilt, often too much to handle. That leaves us with the final question of what lies ahead? As time advances, we come to a point when there is no time. All such measurements become meaningless. Perhaps death is another experience: timeless and non linear. We fall back on fears of the unknown and ways out: paradise, ghosts, spirits, reincarnation, perfect bliss. But no one knows experientially what lies ahead. Our consciousness is real and it has value to us now. Will that go on and become ethereal and continue? Belief is beautiful and comforting but not scientific or very rational. It would be wonderful to know that people are rewarded in their theology or ideology. Who interprets these deeds and who has the truth in these matters? We think we know, but so do others whom we disagree with. Are those that caused 9/11 wrong? God is impossible to speak for. So, we must contemplate the mystery and accept it willingly. |
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| Last Updated ( Monday, 14 September 2009 ) |
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