Birthright

I met with my knee surgeon for the first time since the surgery eight weeks ago and I have to say that I am pretty happy with my situation.

The tear in my knee was significant so a flap of cartilage had to be removed. Why I continue to tear this stuff without even being aware of a precipitating incident is beyond me. I’d like to think it’s because I have an awesome pain threshold but I suspect it has more to do with bad genetics than anything else. Thanks mom and dad. The great news is that my surgeon is world class and the knee abrasion arthroplasty he performed on the joint could regenerate and strengthen the cartilage in the knee and perhaps stop this cycle of damage. The procedure involved the drilling of about ten holes through the remaining cartilage into the bone. This will draw stem cells and blood up from the bone to the surface of the knee and into the cartilage. This should strengthen the overall integrity of the joint. Since nothing is for free, I will require a significantly longer recovery time than if I had just a standard cartilage removal - up to a year. That totally explains why the swelling persists and why I still cannot kneel on that knee.

The rehab for this is right up my alley. The knee must be exercised during the healing process in order for the cartilage to have a better chance of regeneration, I just need to approach it with moderation to control the swelling. Thus I started performing my forms with deeper stances this week. Life is good.

All this good news has got me thinking about my lot in life and how lucky I have been. And I do mean lucky. Most of everything I have, and have accomplished, has been due to my birthright. Thanks again mom and dad.

I have lived a life where air, food, water, and warmth, our most basic physiologic needs according to psychologist Andrew Maslow, have always been guaranteed. I was born in a country where I have the freedom and privilege to accomplish almost anything I desire since my basic necessities for life were forever guaranteed the second I took my first breath because of where my first breath was taken.

What if my first breath had been taken in Malawi? Would I have ever had the option of studying kung fu or would I have been too obsessed with where my next meal would come from? What access to medical care would I have? I have little doubt that my torn knee would have been something I had to live with for the rest of my life if the geography of my birth had been different.

What a privileged life I live. All my necessities are more than addressed while other, less fortunate souls obsess and struggle to find enough for their children to eat. How much of my lifestyle is contributing to their plight? While I consume more than my fair share of the earth’s resources, I need to remind myself that my actions, my very thoughts, are only a privilege afforded to me by my birthright. I hope I maintain enough humility to never forget how lucky I am to have the choices and options I have. With my birthright comes the moral responsibility to ensure I consider the consequences to the less fortunate for the life I choose to live.

“It is easy to dodge our responsibilities, but we cannot dodge the consequences of dodging our responsibilities.”
- Josiah Charles Stamp (1880 - 1941)