Random Musings. . .by Kui Gathua

  “Nothing in life is to be feared, it is only to be understood. Now is the time to understand more, so that we may be fearless.” ~ Marie Curie Reading a scientific research paper on the physiology of fear and its impact on wellness had me thinking about how much this emotion can shift life in myriad ways. It is over a year since the world went into fight mode against an invisible enemy who is despite its facelessness, wrecking very visible havoc on lives and livelihoods. Our general adaptation to fear begins with alarm. Cortisol and adrenaline hormones are released to get us ready to either fight or flee. After a while, we get into a state of resistance where we are still alert but not as strung up. Longer yet and we enter into an exhaustion state where the body’s ability to resist is worn out and burnout and adrenal fatigue kick in. A year in and no end in sight to the debacle, it is no wonder some of us are burnt out. And this is where danger lurks. According to the stud...

  I have been a hiker for a while now and I can tell you I live for the summits. There’s a wind up there that never blows in the valley. A view that you can never enjoy in the valley; a serenity that led my ancestors to believe that their deity, Mwene Nyaga, lived on Mt. Kirinyaga (Kenya). Indeed you find and hear God in a different way up there, surrounded by all the wonders that exist on the peaks. Life however, happens in the valley and peak experiences are special events, not everyday occurrences. My love for peaks coincided with another set of hobbies – buying books and reading them. (Yes, they are mutually exclusive!) Sometime back I gravitated towards a supermarket display of books and immediately focused on a small paperback by Spencer Johnson (he of the “Who Moved My Cheese” fame). My resolve to always stick to my shopping list was instantly set aside and the book went straight into my basket. Last week I eventually came around to reading it. It sure turned out to be a...

" The two hardest tests on the spiritual road are the patience to wait for the right moment and the courage not to be disappointed with that we encounter.” ~ Paulo Coelho Also known as composure, endurance, grit, long-suffering, moderation, perseverance, restraint, staying power, toleration. Contrasted against agitation, frustration, impatience, intolerance, resistance.     Patience is the ability or willingness to suppress restlessness or annoyance when confronted with delay. I took a deep breath when I read that definition. I have lived long enough to have learnt that waiting is part of the game of life. Some waits are long but they have a predicted end date. I remember waiting to do my exams and counting down every lesson, every mid-term, and every end of semester as one less to graduation day. And indeed, it came to pass. . .before another chapter in the waiting game begun. That is a kind of good patience, and that’s not what I’m thinking about today. Today m...

  "The aim of life is appreciation; there is no sense in not appreciating things; and there is no sense in having more of them if you have less appreciation of them.” ~ G. K. Chesterton   It is a new month. And today is the 64 th day of the year 2021. The first quarter of the year is 71% gone. #timecheck I am taking a review break, to count my blessings, name them and give thanks for them. The first and most important is that I am here. I may not be totally pain free, worry free, care free, happy- go-lucky, but I am alive and for that, I give thanks. I set goals at the beginning of the year. 64 days later, I am grateful that I have for the large part kept my commitments to myself and others and I am not where I started. I am on a trajectory to achieve those goals and I am proving to myself that I can be a person of my word. I can be trusted, even by myself. I can keep my word and for that, I give thanks. This year, I have not walked alone. I am doing life accomp...