"Life is a series of lessons that have to be lived to be understood."

Ralph Waldo Emerson

Three aspects of life hold your keys to healthy living: Love, Creativity, and Play.

Because of these "keys," a child's learning is said to be 60% complete before the age of six. "child's play" is a low-risk activity during which the body and brain interact toward a goal. You have heard it said that we do not stop playing because we get old; we get old because we stop playing.

When my habits connect me to my inner wisdom, love, creativity, and play seem to automatically emerge in my life. When your awareness goes beyond your thinking mind, those activities are not something you do--they become something you receive from deep within. Those actions are the natural expression of inner wisdom; you just have to be in the state of mind to receive them.

I was interviewed because I represented a person "positively dealing with MS." Before the interview, I thought about the reasons for this "positive" experience. Two symptoms of my disease have helped me develop an approach that serves me well. First, because my disease has rendered me legally blind, I cannot see outside of myself very well, and I am forced to look within. Instead of only looking outside for the solutions to my problems, I now look inside to see how I can best work with my external resources, like my doctor.

Secondly, my short-term memory is affected. My forgetfulness traps me in the moment, and because I forget so easily, conscious habits have become a valuable tool for me. I create conscious habits, which deal with my struggles better than my personality and intellect ever could. When I create a habit of responding to something the way I want, the habit takes hold before I even "think about" doing something.

I believe we can learn important lessons from our younger friends; we are alive to enjoy life. When you face a dangerous challenge, that simple lesson might save your life.

I do not believe in accidents. I feel we have to be responsible for everything we do. Looking within and developing conscious habits has become my path to finding quality in my life. This is how I turn my challenges with MS into blessings.

Copyright 2006 Marc Lerner

Marc Lerner is the President of Life Skills Inc. and the author of The Life Skills Approach. He lectures frequently to patients in a health crisis and those undergoing emotional trauma, to help them harness inner resources to overcome these obstacles. For more information and a free e-book, please visit http://www.lifeskillsinc.com