Turn Around

The human spirit is never to be under estimated, in its ability to recover, from serious wounds to body, mind, or heart. if we
are open to the possibility of recovery and rise to face our challenges. I like to hear stories that although they are rooted in
the dismal past, tell of the "turn around" experiences of human beings, who, from living in a downward spiral, were somehow
triggered to make a reversal in their life direction...then had the courage and fortitude to climb back towards meeting life...
overcoming their demons...or even coming back to the point where they could give something back to the world. Over the years...I have heard many "turn around" stories...especially about certain Native People...who from the depths...found a way to return to life. My favourite one...told to me by a sibling...is of a man I used to know in Toronto. He spent several years on skid row...the home of many Native People...suffering from many wounds. One day he was lying on the sidewalk...finding it
hard to get up...and being ignored by passers by...and having a worm's eye view of what was going on around him. As he lay
there...he saw a man who was sloppily dressed...disappear into a clothing store across the way...and a while later...emerge
in a smartly cut brand new blue suit. He took note of the man's metamorphosis and said to himself..."One day...I want to wear a new suit like that!". A spark had been lit in him that day....and it wasn't long after...he sought treatment for his problem with alcohol. As they say...the rest is history. When I knew him he was a respected elder at the Native Centre in
Toronto. I moved away from there...but a few years later returned for a visit. Travelling on the street car there one day...a
sign on a building caught my eye. It was a health clinic...and it bore the name of this very man...who once upon a time...from
low down on the sidewalk...had been inspired by a man in a spiffy new blue suit...to start making his return to living life.
At times when my outlook on life dips low...I remember that unlike many others in the world who have a long road back from
where they find themselves in life...my journey is only a short one back to seeing that...my glass is actually...more than half
full...and I should get on with living life.................Quester.