Flu, fever and body aches incapacitate us at times. We are so busy in the hectic routine of life that such instances are very frustrating – in fact, annoying. Many a time we become cranky and vent this frustration on our attendants and close ones who look after us.

What if we turn this bane into a boon!

Yes we can.

In the humdrum of life we lose track of many things. Most of us are so mechanically stuck in our routines that we seldom have time to think and re-evaluate our life-styles and our priorities. At times, something is severely wrong with our priorities and we do not follow the right moral conduct. We might not fulfill certain obligations we owe to God or to our fellow human beings. So content we may be that we are fulfilling our obligations that a thought to the contrary does not even cross our minds in normal circumstances. However, it is situations like sickness that suddenly take us out from the set routine of life and place us in a new paradigm. Intense schedules are dashed to ground. Incessant meetings and relentless appointments have to take a break.

Annoying this may be but slowing down teaches us patience and with patience comes the opportunity not only to review and re-evaluate our lives but also to keep a more vigilant track of our blessings. A temporary shut-down in life should not shut our eyes to the favours of God. This is the best time to count and cherish them, savour and relish them. It is an opportunity, therefore, to strengthen our relationship with our Creator. It is a time to say a big thank you to Him and a time also to look at people around us who are deprived of God’s favours and who need our affection and sympathy.

Another way to avail this illness-afforded free-time is to think of unconventional solutions to conventional issues. In illnesses which do not affect our intellectual powers, it can be a time to use our brain to think in an out-of- the -box manner. We can tune our brain to novel ideas and creative thinking. The starting point is to look at an issue that bothers a lot. We can make our mind solution oriented to this issue by simply thinking of bizarre and unusual ways of solving it.

Still another benefit that we can derive from this God provided break from life is to conquer our fears. Fears have their roots in our brain and need resolve and determination to overcome them. If this resolve can be mustered, then the best way to vanquish our fears is to gear ourselves during this time to plan to start doing exactly what we fear, consistently and rapidly if possible.

Illness then is a bane that can be turned into a boon with the right attitude!