Turn your wounds into wisdom

“Happiness can be found, even in the darkest of times, if one only remembers to turn on the light” – Steven Kloves, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (movie)

I’m on my eight weeks post-operation.

 I’ve never been outside the house except when I needed to go to the hospital for my check-up.

 During this period I’m learning a lot about how powerful the human spirit is when it comes to our physical and emotional strength.

Physically, because at this time I still could not bear weight on my left foot. Although I could already step it on the floor, I still could not walk.

And because of that, I’m forced to move using just my right leg.

I hop, I slide, I dance gangnam style with my right leg just to get from pt A to pt B. Sometimes I even use my arms to crawl.

Yes I do crawl.  I crawl when my les gets tired.

Emotionally, because there are times when I am unable to do simple things easily like turning on the lights.

I sometimes get frustrated.

At times I get mad with my situation.

But amidst my predicament I still manage to be grateful.

I always remember that everytime you think of how awful your situation is at the present, the more you would get more of the “bad” into your future.

So I thought of three great things I can gain to what’s happened to me and they are:

1. I get to spend a lot of time with my kids

I am actually giving almost every minute of my life now with them.

I get to see how they grow, how they act, how they speak, how they throw temper tantrums.

Here’s what I learned, every child has their own angels and demons inside them.

Yes, all children have it.

By the way, do you want to know which side of your child would grow?

The answer is simple, the one that you pay attention to.

So, I always give more regard to their good qualities than their bad qualities.

We play, we wrestle, we read books,  watch TV, sometimes even take a bath together.

(Yep, the things you can do with your kids aged 2 and 5.)

2. I am able to rest my mind and body

I’ve been working so hard for as long as I can remember, my mind and body has spent a lot of energy from work, sports activity, business planning etc. 

I think I got myself caught up in a “rat race” where we just wanted to work, work, work, work and with little time to spare play. 

Now because of my injury I’m more of lying on bed for at least 23 hours a day.

Talk about total mind and body rest huh.

3. I get to improve myself

In Jack Canfield’s book, “The Success Principles”, he said that we as humans must always to strive for constant never ending need of self-improvement.

Because of my injury, I now am able to read a lot of books, articles and learn a lot about life.

Life is a journey, and along the journey you should always keep on learning.

It is because the moment you stop learning, you start dying.

That is why I am using this great opportunity to make myself better, in all areas of my life.

Thank God for problems

Everytime you encountered some unexpected detour or problems in life, don’t get discouraged right away, because blessings do come beneath every adversity.

Let me tell you a story.

In Alaska, there has been an increased number of cod fishing. 

(codfish)

There were said that codfishes are delicious to eat especially when it is baked or poached.

News of this kind of fish reached the China.

The problem is the shipping.  At first they tried to deliver the codfish frozen but the people in the south complained that the fish looses its taste because of the long journey.

They then tried a different approach. This time they kept the codfish alive, but again because of the travel plus the fact that the codfish does not move a lot, it made the fish mushy upon reaching port and also lost its taste.

Then one person came up with an idea, they mixed some catfish together with the codfish. 

Catfish are found to be the enemy of the codfish.  Once they saw them they now stayed alert, and they always move around because the catfish are chasing them.

Hence when they reach port, the codfish are there alive and fresh.

Opportunities in every crisis

Friends, do you have problems in your life now?

Have you encountered an obstacle that seemed too big to overcome?

Are you being hunted by a grief, boredom or sadness ?

Sometimes I wondered, when bad things are happening to us, we ask God, “Why did this happen to me?”

But have you ever asked the same question when good things have come about?

We have the tendency to look on the negative with a magnifying glass, but the problem is, whatever we focus on grows.

Friends, just stay strong.

You may have a catfish in your life now, but always remember that catfish is sent by God as a medium for your abundance.

There is always good in every bad.

My injury would not prevent me in seeing God’s favor, he sent me my catfish to bless me.

You may not see it in your life now, but again, the very thing that is hurting your right now, could be the same thing that could catapult you into greatness.

Have a wonderful life.

Aim high, livelife, love God,

Ludwig Weigand

The detours of life

"No matter how much you try to manage your life, there will always be things that will be out of your control. But that’s why you have Me. I am the God that has power over life and death. I make the world go around and keep the planets turning in their proper places. And I am the same God who walks with you every moment of your day". - God

On August 17.2012, just barely 2 months as of today, I was playing an intense basketball game. We were on defense and one of our opponent drove to the basket, I jumped high hoping to block his shot, when I went down, I heard a popping sound at the back of my left heel, and felt a terrible pain after.

The funny thing is that I didn’t even fell down the floor, I kept my balance and limped off the bench without anyone assisting me. However as I sit, I knew that what I have is something serious, I knew that this was no ordinary cramp I sometimes experienced during the game, it was a different feeling.

I was right, three days after the injury, after much swelling in my foot and difficulty in walking, me and my wife went to the hospital to have it checked-up, and there I was told by the doctors that I tore my Achilles tendon, and I needed surgery.

I’ve always been a big fan a basketball and everytime I hear players getting injured  due to Achilles tendon or ACL (knee injury), i felt like it sounded good. I mean, “Achilles tendon” sounds very cool right, so “sossy”, so sophisticated, but in the end when people ask you, all you can say is “napilayan ako eh”. 

Believe me, there is nothing cool with this type of injury most specially when the doctors said that I needed surgery.  Main reason, I was afraid of needles!  I can’t even watch the nurses put dextrose needle on my wife’s hand during her pregnancy! That is why I told myself, I f I were to die, I want to die a healthy natural death.  No injections please!

But it has to happen, so the surgery took place on August 25^th, and I was put on a cast up to this date.

Road of life is not always straight

I shared my story to you just to let you know that Life does have some detours.

A failed relationship is a detour.

A failed business is a detour.

A health problem is a detour.

A dead-end job is a detour.

You maybe coasting along now, living your life, you think you are doing fine, all of a sudden, a disaster comes in.

It happens unexpectedly, for no apparent reason. You ask God why did He let this things happen.

I  sometimes  refer to the detours as God’s disturbance.

Yes he does sometimes disturb our peace. But he does it for a reason.

He wants to see how we respond.

How we respond would more likely define our future.

Best-selling author Jack Canfield said that an event + response = outcome (E + R = O).

There are many events in our life that we can’t control.

It just happens, but what we can control is how we respond to this event.

Many people are just too focused on the things that they could not control.

If you have lost your job, someone dear to you walked out of your life, instead of wallowing in self pity, feeling sorry for yourself,  go get up and try to improve yourself.

It could be reading a new book to get a new skill, or maybe put up your own business. Or you could try to be a more loving, or a more caring person. In short try to improve on yourself.

Detours like failures are temporary defeats not a dead end

Detours are designed for us to know that there is a better highway or a bigger mountain that awaits us.

There was this man who was trying so hard on his job to become successful, he works so hard everyday, he goes overtime about three times a week, he even sometimes work during on weekends.

The problem is no matter how hard he tried, he seemed could not achieve success, he was passed over promotion not only once but three times in his career. He was liked climbing this mountain of his dreams and something seems to be blocking his path.

On his 5^th year working, his company merged into another company and a mass lay-off of workers are needed.  Unfortunately, he was one of those who lost their jobs during the merger.

He was so devastated, thinking it is the end of him. He locked himself in his apartment for two weeks feeling so depressed.

Until one day, an old friend stopped by and invited him to an opportunity meeting, it was a business orientation.  There he saw that he has hope. He got so excited and worked hard.  In less than a year he was already making three times he was making on his former job.

He realized that God did not allow for him to succeed on his mountain of dreams on his job because there was a bigger mountain which awaits for him on his business.

The happiest person in this world is the one who enjoys the scenery while on a detour.

Friend is your life in a detour now?

Just relax, stay calm.

Remember there is always calm after the storm.

Enjoy, have fun with life.

God said, when things are spinning out of control, let go of the reins and let me take over.

Trust in God.

Aim high, live life, love God.

Ludwig Weigand