Strength at the Core

One of the central principles of my work as a physiotherapist is to help strengthen my little children from their cores.  Trunk strength is central to being able to move.  We all need strength in both our abdominals and  back muscles.  We need to be able to rotate our trunks and smoothly shift between flexion, extension and rotation in our cores.

As I have been reflecting on our own unique life stories, I have been reminded of the central importance of our core being as people.   Today in a staff meeting I looked around the table at each of my colleagues.  Though I have worked with many of them for a long time, I actually know very little about the details of each of their life journeys.  Even so, I feel like I deeply know and care for each person.  We are a diverse group representing different nationalities, faiths and experiences.  Some of us are married, others have children, some have travelled widely, and others have not.  What I appreciate about each person are not the specific things that  they have done with their lives, but rather who they are at their core.   The qualities of love, gentleness, thoughtfulness, joy, patience, kindness, and goodness are what really shines through each of these fine people, regardless of the actual things they have done or not done.  I may not know all the details of their lives, but I do so value the qualities at their cores.  These colleagues of mine move with grace through their cores of kindness and love.  I am reminded to focus on what is really lasting.  Regardless of what our actual stories hold, may we ourselves be strong at our cores in the qualities that really last and resonate in care and compassion and love with those around us.