Respect

     At our base, we are cells. Nuclei, mitochondria, endoplasmic reticulum. Carbon (mostly), hydrogen, and oxygen. At our base, we are temporary, we are perishable and our time is limited. Whichever belief system we adhere to, we must recognize that we have one body in this lifetime, that our bodies decay, that our time is limited.

When our bodies tell us to rest, we should rest.

When our bodies tell us to eat, we should eat.

     We should be thankful for these temporary vessels our minds have been afforded, treat them with the utmost respect and love them fiercely. Our physical forms are an extension of our minds, and should be treated with the same reverence. They are not a chamber, or a prison, that our hopes and aspirations must combat to achieve their deepest desires. Our bodies are our physical representations on this planet, but we must keep in mind that whereas our minds may be abstract and everlasting, our bodies slowly but surely respond to our actions, decay and bring us every day closer to death.

     We must be thankful for our physical forms, treat them with love and respect and take care of them fiercely.

     As your people, we often forget to take care of ourselves. We drink too much, don’t sleep enough, and don’t eat well. We ignore our bodies when they tell us to sleep, take stimulants to keep us awake deep into the night, and ignore the urges of our physical selves. We prioritize our ambitions and our goals, but forget that our struggles are not fruitful if we are not healthy enough to feel their benefits. We think we live forever and have a twisted notion of morality, choosing to push away our inhibitions in the form of alcoholic beverages only to be greeted by symptoms that are a reflection of our body’s adverse reaction.

     I think this characteristic of our generation, and the popularization of disrespecting our physical selves is one of our greatest failures. We are revolutionary, we are millennials, we are a stark difference to the past. But if we continue to not be thankful for the vessels that seek to allow us to achieve change and our deepest desires, there will be no revolution, there will be no dreams. There will only be illness, destroyed livers, and deaths too soon.

     Respect your physical forms, and be thankful for what they can provide you.

by Catalina Berenblum