Focus Pocus

Marty was smoking in front of the building when I arrived for work the next day. He had been off the painkillers for a little over a month.  I asked him how he was doing.

He said, “I can’t believe how lucky I am my wife stayed with me all this time.  Most of the time she’s a real sweetheart. She’s still a beaut, and I’m like a kid again, chasing the wife around the house. You know what I mean? Just yesterday she was coming out of the shower…”

I knew what he meant, but didn’t really want to hear the details. I interrupted him, “Sounds great.  Why don’t you look happier?”

“Don’t get me wrong, I love her.  Lately though, I’m really noticing things, things I didn’t see when I was taking all them pills.  She’s a control freak.  She’s a miserable tipper. She’s got a touch of COD. Don’t know why I couldn’t see that before.”

“I think you mean OCD,” I said.  “And listen, we see things with our eyes, but our mind processes what we see like a camera. With a camera, when one thing’s in focus, something else is out of focus.  When you were abusing opiates, you saw clearly you needed to get your drug every day.  The rest of your life was out of focus.  Now you’re focused on your wife.  Seeing her clearly, for ‘better or worse’ so to speak, gives you a chance to fix what’s broken and enjoy what’s not.”

Today I will be grateful for focus and clarity, even when I don’t like everything I see.

Life on Life’s Terms II © 2015 by Ken Montrose

(Just a reminder: LOLT II is a work of fiction.  Any resemblance to anyone you might know is purely coincidental.)