inMotion Magazine

Finding Answers 43 to the hair’s breadth between you and that errant sock lying just beyond your crutches’ reach. When you’re one-legged, one-armed, wheelchair bound or physically different in almost any way from those considered “able-bodied,” you become keenly aware of the distance that can stand between you and your goals. In our deepest moments of despair, we can even come to believe that fulfillment and true happiness will always be just inches away. There are many circumstances that nudge people to ask the questions of whomever we think will listen; more painful is the feeling that no one is listening or seems to care. However, the ability lies within us to put ourselves in a different state of mind. We each have the ability to hypnotize ourselves with the mantras we repeat. A mantra is a repeated word or sound, used to aid in concentration during meditation. Walking on hot rocks, lying prone on a bed of nails or holding one’s breath while deep sea fishing – these are just a few examples of what people can accomplish when they master the ability to push themselves beyond imposed physical and mental limits, by invoking sounds or words to enhance their ability to endure. As amputees, it’s important to be aware and mindful of the mantras, formed as questions, that we repeat. The wrong questions can echo like the songs of sirens in our mind, sending us stumbling in a mental fog before crashing on the rocks. Navigating the seas of life as an amputee is rough. Body, mind and spirit suffer the carnage caused by waves of uncertainty, doubt and instability. We can easily find ourselves “tsunamied” by events beyond our control, lost in a sea of quandaries and queries. For me, it all comes down to having the will to go the distance. The mantra I choose to invoke when stormy weather breaks: One more inch. When I feel frustrated, empty and just plain stuck, I force myself to go one more inch. One more inch deeper into the wellness and strength that dwells inside me. One more inch closer to the motivating and inspiring love of my family and friends. One more inch further away from any doubt or fear that inhibits me. Ever closer to the richness of living in faith, with courage and wisdom. One more inch.