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Natural Awakenings Central New Jersey

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Life is Difficult

M. Scott Peck’s bestselling book, “The Road Less Traveled,” opens with this profound statement.  “Life is difficult. This is a great truth, one of the greatest truths. It is a great truth because once we truly see this truth, we transcend it. Once we truly know that life is difficult—once we truly understand and accept it—then life is no longer difficult. Because once it is accepted, the fact that life is difficult no longer matters.”

When I first read this book over 30 years ago, everything he presented was new to me. I had no clue or understanding of how to arrange my thinking to make life easier. That a thinking process allied with my personality would allow me to live a calmer more laidback life, a life of acceptance. What a concept! Yet as simple as that statement is, mastering acceptance has proved to be a bit more challenging.

People, I have learned, are difficult! Situations of everyday living are difficult. Relationships are complicated and sometimes very difficult. Business, time, frustrations, etc., again prove Mr. Peck to be right—life is difficult. And always more difficult if I get in the way and try to fight against the logic of acceptance.

I get the concept now. Logically, I know it to be true. I have learned I will not always get my way. That people will do what people will do and I cannot control them, that I am not in charge of others. To bring acceptance into my daily life, I first had to understand those two points.

Understanding that I am not in charge of every situation, and that I do not have to be in control. Remembering that I am not god and that in reality, I am in control of very little. The key here for me is paying attention to me–my behavior, actions, agenda, and my adjustments—to reach the level of acceptance I need to make life easier.

What level, what planet, what spiritual plain did people like Mother Theresa and Gandhi come from? I do not know. Achieving those heights might be a stretch on my part, but the model of not judging others, coupled with the compassion, empathy, and the ability to forgive while serving others, all seem to be the foundation and the pathway to acceptance.

In peace, love and laughter,

Joe

relationship happiness heart Natural Awakenings wellness healthy living publisher's letter Joe Dunne Natural Awakenings Central New Jersey
Tick Talk

Spring officially sprung on March 21. We have turned our clocks ahead. We are looking forward to warm winds, sunny skies and the smell of fresh cut grass. The daffodils and tulips have recently bloomed and we are just starting with the yard work that comes with the warmer weather.  Sadly, another season has started ramping up.  Tick season.

•             The best form of protection is prevention. Educating oneself about tick activity and how our behaviors overlap with tick habitats is the first step.

•             According to the NJ DOH, in 2022 Hunterdon County led the state with a Lyme disease incidence rate of 426 cases per 100,000 people. The fact is ticks spend approximately 90% of their lives not on a host but aggressively searching for one, molting to their next stage or over-wintering. This is why a tick remediation program should be implemented on school grounds where NJ DOH deems high risk for tick exposure and subsequent attachment to human hosts.

•             Governor Murphy has signed a bill that mandates tick education in NJ public schools. See this for the details.  Tick education must now be incorporated into K-12 school curriculum. See link:

https://www.nj.gov/education/broadcasts/2023/sept/27/TicksandTick-BorneIllnessEducation.pdf

•             May is a great month to remind the public that tick activity is in full swing. In New Jersey, there are many tickborne diseases that affect residents, including Anaplasmosis, Babesiosis, Ehrlichiosis, Lyme disease, Powassan, and Spotted Fever Group Rickettsiosis.

•             For years, the focus has mainly been about protecting ourselves from Lyme disease. But other tick-borne diseases are on the rise in Central Jersey. An increase of incidence of Babesia and Anaplasma are sidelining people too. These two pathogens are scary because they effect our blood cells. Babesia affects the red blood cells and Anaplasma effects the white blood cells.

•             Ticks can be infected with more than one pathogen. When you contract Lyme it is possible to contract more than just that one disease. This is called a co-infection. It is super important to pay attention to your symptoms. See link.

https://twp.freehold.nj.us/480/Disease-Co-Infection

A good resource from the State:

https://www.nj.gov/health/cd/topics/tickborne.shtml

 

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