by Donna Quesada: The Sleeping Dragon—
I have written before about my challenges with sleep. Through the years though, the anxiety I have felt around it has softened. I’ve come to see that no matter who you are, where you are, or what your path is, being a human comes with some sort of Achilles’ heel… be it physical, mental, legal, medical or otherwise. So, I’ve gained perspective. These things are always a work in progress. The intensity ebbs and flows. And just when you think you’ve got it beat, it comes knocking on your door again… like the dragon you thought was conquered, only to find it was only sleeping, but has reared its head again… Something has triggered you.
Such was the case last week, when I was on a little road trip. We took the dogs, including my senior fellow, Marcel, who ended up keeping me up all night, during the first night, with digestion issues.
Unthinkable Sacrifice—
Exhausted and beaten the next morning, and wondering how I could find it in me to explore the new town, I suddenly remembered something from a movie I had just seen:
The greatest gift is to give one’s life so that my friends may live.
It was from that movie, Society of the Snow, which recounts the true story of the survivors of a 1972 plane crash in the Andes. In order to survive, they did the unthinkable and consumed the flesh of those who didn’t make it.
The quote comes from one of the young men who knew he was dying, and gave his permission to the others, that they may use his body so that they could possibly survive. Heavy sacrifice.
Use Gratitude To Flip It Over—
My Marcel had already been adopted once and then returned to the pound as a puppy, before I came along. I had recently lost my beloved little poodle, who passed at 13 years of age, and I was ready to adopt again. I’ll never forget that day… It was the 4th shelter I visited, and this scruffy little terrier licked my hand through the holding cage.
When the man got him out, he was on his best behavior. A scruffy, six-month old puppy, with wispy, unhealthy looking fur. He would soon blossom into a sheep with the thickest fur you ever saw.
Although he is my sweet little angel, he sometimes has an edgy side… nothing the Dog Whisperer wouldn’t have put right in five minutes, but I could see why he was returned to the pound the first time around. We have been together over 14 years now, and I am cherishing every moment I have left with him.
So, as I lay in bed, in our Airbnb, feeling exhausted and sorry for myself, I suddenly flashed on that quote from the movie. As tears welled up in my eyes, I felt intensely grateful that I was chosen to be Marcel’s “person.” While I’m no Cesar Milan, the universe knew that I could handle him. And how lucky I am that I could sacrifice my sleep to take care of him last night, even if that meant walking him in the cold, at 1 o’clock in the morning, on a dark and unfamiliar street. How wonderful that we have each other and that I can give him comfort in these last chapters of his life.
All in all, it’s a minor sacrifice. Especially when you think of what real hardship is… Such as what those men went through on that mountain, as portrayed in the movie.
My message is… Next time the dragons come out to play and poke you where you’re vulnerable and easily triggered, flip it over into something to be grateful for, and the fear shrinks down like a dying fire. Whatever it is, get into the frame of mind of loving sacrifice, rather than whoa is me. It works.
