Day 25 - The reason you believe you’re still alive today.

From Thirty Days of Truth

After this post, only five more to go. I'm glad. I'm done with prompts and memes for awhile. I think I'm more of a free-form kinda person.

Why do I believe I'm still alive today? My genes aren't that great. I shouldn't be as healthy as I am for a woman of my age. My father died at the age of 68 of lung cancer in 1992. My mother died at age 77 in 2003 of heart disease related issues. My sister Kim died of cancer at the young age of 56 almost three years ago.

I have three younger sisters left, all of which are battling some sort of debilitating medical and/or psychological and potentially life-threatening issues.

Some would say I have psychological issues. It depends on who you ask on any given day and the political climate at that moment.

Let's be realistic. I'm overweight. I sporadically attempt to engage in a healthy exercise routine and do yoga, but as I said it is sporadic at best. In the last couple of months I learned that my blood sugar is a little higher than normal, so I'm at risk for diabetes, making it all that more important to incorporate an exercise routine into my life. I have high blood pressure for which I take a daily medication. That, too, might be alleviated by that exercise routine and a little weight loss.

However, I do some good things for myself. After two unsuccessful attempts, I finally stopped smoking in my 30's. It was one of the best things I ever did, even though I gained some weight afterward. It was totally worth it. I write to relieve stress. And when that doesn't do the trick, I might go for a walk or walk on the treadmill. I do not sit and watch television for more than a couple of hours each evening, although music or the tv is usually on (24-hr news MSNBC) while I cook, clean and do laundry. I go to bed at just about the same time every night and get up about the same time every morning without an alarm. I drink lots of water, a minimum of two 24-oz glasses daily. I eat fresh food. I don't make meals from box mixes, except for an occasional boxed cake mix, egg roll or tater tot ~ probably less than once a month. I cook nearly every single day. I eat fast food so rarely, I could count the number of times in a year on one hand with fingers left over. Finally, I feel loved. I am in a deeply loving, very affectionate, demonstrative, supportive, respectful, considerate and often humorous relationship. You've heard of those studies about the benefits and possible healing properties of human touch. I don't doubt the significance or importance of human touch for a second and I think warm, loving hugs are, at the very least, powerful stress reducers.

Does any of that make any difference? I don't know. Maybe I've just been lucky.