There are studies coming out showing those of us with clonal mast cell diseases seem to have a natural immunity to covid, or are at least not getting critically ill if we do get it because our hyperactive immune systems fight the virus off quickly and efficiently. So there’s a bit of a silver lining to being chronically ill, I suppose.

Of course it doesn’t feel like a blessing in disguise when I am struggling to breathe during smokey days or covered in red, itchy skin when it’s hot out or wanting to pass out if I stand up too quickly or try to stand over a hot stove too long.

A few years ago, when I was passing out a lot, I fell forward and stretched the tendons in my feet badly which made walking difficult. Ugh. It took them over a year to fully heal but then it happened again, not as bad, but enough to remind me that I don’t want to pass out ever again if possible. So I learned strategies to mitigate my risks and learned to pay attention to the symptoms that lead up to syncope so I can stave it off before it happens.

I’ve been pretty successful, thankfully.

I also learned not to take things like walking for granted. While my feet were healing I felt more crippled than I ever have and it was distressing not to be able to do something so fundamental to being human. My life is still quite limited thanks to my wonky mast cells, but at least I can walk normally again so I love to do it as much as my immune system will allow.

I will never take my feet for granted again.

Last night, just before sunset, I talked the hubs into driving us out to one of our favorite places to run the dogs just so we could get out and walk around and take in the scenery, just the two of us.

When we take the pack with us we are always so focused on them and as much as we love them, they are loud and chaotic and all of that energy makes it hard to really just enjoy the nature around us.

We definitely can’t quietly watch the horses that fill every other field around here.

Sometimes it’s easy to take all these things for granted (like I did my feet) and we forget to stop and just enjoy the beauty all around us. This applies whether you live in the country or in the city; both are filled with natural wonders that quietly wait for us to notice them.

The loud things seem to always grab our attention and can be exciting and even invigorating but in times like these, we may do better ignoring them sometimes and just focus on the silent stuff.