Friday, November 21, 2003

Wednesday night Butch’s eyes were so red it was alarming. At the turn, down Bill and Jo’s road is the office of an Ophthalmologist / MD so I pressed Butch to go see him. They worked him in yesterday. He was told he had developed an allergy most likely to Alphagan, which are the drops he uses to lower pressure in his eyes. The doctor also noticed his hack and snort coughing so we discussed allergies in general. He told us most allergies are food related with the three most common culprits being milk, wheat and sugar. So for the next 8 days we are eradicating those items from his diet to see if we can isolate that problem. All eye drops have been stopped temporarily to get his eyes cleared up. He is using a mixture of refresh P M ointment and a steroid drop on the outside of his eyelid with the idea that some of it would also get into his eyes. His eyes have improved tremendously already.
So what does this do for travel? We are grounded for the time being. We have another appointment next Friday- the day after Thanksgiving. We didn’t plan to stay here this long but the eyes have it! Once the allergy problem has been addressed we will need to get back to the pressure issue. It does sound like the doctor has some promising ideas.


Defining Spirituality
While the spirit is often relegated to the province of religion, there is a distinct difference between religion and spirituality. Spirituality exists in a realm all its own and belongs to everyone. Its domain is the nonphysical - it deals with our inner essence, our cosmic energy, and our personal understanding of a higher power. In many languages, the words "spirit" and "breath" are the same, and it's rewarding to enhance spirituality by practicing breath work, meditating, taking walks in nature, or even by keeping fresh flowers in the home. While religion can be your primary avenue for spiritual work, you may find spirituality in other places as well. Sometimes music, art or inspirational books speak to you on a spiritual level. Health necessarily encompasses our bodies, minds and spirit, and true health cannot be easily attained without a strong connection to our spiritual selves.