Candy

I can feel every ache and pain today. Some days are like that. And then I look at pictures from days gone by and I do not recall pain, I was oblivious to pain. There would be lots of days in my future that would provide me with detailed descriptions of pain in a variety of circumstances and body parts, but oh the joys of youth. If it hurt, it was only for a moment. Then the pain either went away or someone offered you a candy and you experienced an immediate onset of amnesia. I have tried candy today, no such luck. I could play volleyball tournaments with a broken wrist or march with a broken foot. Today a hang nail can do me in.
I think maybe the difference is that the ingredients in the candy are different, or I no longer delight in simple distractions. I could say that if anything my focus on days like today are concentrated and intensely focused on the symptom. Only a Butterfinger Blizzard has any chance of providing a diversion but my guess is that would be short lived too. And i would have to drive somewhere to get it. See it is already too much work.
Interesting as I consider this shift in our focus with age. When we are young we think of the world, things "out there" and we want to explore. We can ignore say, a fractured left arm with the right incentive, which for me was trick or treat. The hopes of a full basket of goodies was enough incentive for me to hide it. I was 9 after all. Note to self: never play with a footsie. Of course after I realized I could not carry the basket as it got weighted down with loot causing me to drop it repeatedly I had to go home and fess up.
As you age though there is this "middle earth" place where you start to focus on the changes in your body. Things hurt, no longer move the same or smell the same or well, look the same. A polar shift occurs with silent quakes and the next thing you know is you suffer from a furniture problem. Your chest has fallen into your drawers. And the things you used to eat and drink without a second thought cause toxic repercussions with sounds you only used to see in movies. And you talk about it, all the time, every where, with anyone. And they have it too!
But it seems at the end of this life journey we may be given a reprieve and one more tiny glimpse of those care free days. Whether it is less pain or the inability to remember you hurt, things seem to mellow. You don't talk about your complaints as much maybe because you can't hear the sounds, and your sniffer has gone cold and well really, how upset can a stomach get with mashed potatoes and toast. Things calm down. We get a little flash of the past. And you might even get the opportunity to recall those good old days when you used to do everything without a care. When you had no recollection of pain and a piece of candy was the ticket to a great day. Have some candy today.