A change of perspective

Yesterday, I heard words that terrified me to the core… “Your dad is in hospital, getting his heart shocked”. My own heart broke a little. The news got gradually worse as the day went on and my dad ended up spending a night in ICU being monitored so they could give it another go today and get his heartbeat back to normal rhythm.

This is not supposed to be happening to my dad. He’s healthy, fit and my dad. He climbed Everest, he cycled the El Camino, he does canopy tours and takes part in ocean yacht races with me.

So in between my panic attacks and tears, I came to the realisation that the things that have been on my mind lately are not really important. I’ve been wasting time trying to change things that probably won’t change, no matter how much I do – they aren’t mine to change. I need to focus on family and friends and the goodness they bring to my life. I need to leave the negative behind and stop looking back.

Lately, I’ve been going around in circles, repeating mistakes and expecting different results (isn’t that the definition of insanity?). I need to stop this bad habit and just get on with the positive things and surround myself with good people who are genuine and want the same things. Life really is too short and precious to be wasting time with disingenuous people who don’t add the right value.

It’s funny how a shock and the threat of mortality can really change your perspective like that. I will no longer sweat the small stuff or compromise what I deserve.