Allergies

For the past two months I’ve been suffering from terrible allergies. It seems no matter what treatments I’ve tried, whether prescribed or holistic, my allergies haven’t ceased. I start my days plowing through an entire box of Kleenex, dabbing my watering eyes, and coating myself in eucalyptus in an effort to open my sinuses and have a modicum of breathing capacity. Sounds attractive, I know.

I recently underwent another battery of allergy tests to determine what exactly I’m allergic to. I don’t know if any of you have undergone allergy or skin testing, but the process is as follows. In short, you’re injected, with tiny, painless needles, each containing a serum of possible suspects. If your skin reacts to the allergen you were injected with, then it’s determined that you have a low tolerance or allergy to this substance. For me, the verdict was ragweed, pollen, dust, dust mites and pet dander. The latter is tough given I’ve rescued a couple of abused animals and wouldn’t think of parting with them due to my allergy discomfort.

Miriam Webster clarifies an allergy as:
1: altered bodily reactivity (as hypersensitivity) to an antigen in response to a first exposure
2: exaggerated or pathological reaction (as by sneezing, respiratory embarrassment, itching, or skin rashes) to substances, situations, or physical states that are without comparable effect on the average individual

This got me to thinking; how appealing life would be if we had the physical capacity to be allergic to matters that foster negative thoughts and actions. Such as intolerance, hatred, gossip, jealousy, violence, lying, negativity, crime, cheating, abuse, depression, laziness, low self-esteem, disrespect, etc. If we would even entertain a thought in the above mentioned list, our bodies would react fiercely, making us miserable and highly uncomfortable. It wouldn’t take long for us to learn to sway from such toxic living, finding it repugnant, and start practicing some serious acts of love and kindness.

Although this concept can’t take a literal form, we can all strive toward figuratively applying this principle to our lives. We can determine in ourselves that we will steer clear of hurtful and harmful acts toward others and ourselves; and have a zero tolerance policy of hatred, violence, disrespect and the like. Our behaviors would be solely those of thoughtfulness, kindness, unconditional love, selflessness, charity, and understanding. I guarantee that by doing so, you’ll not only feel good about your actions, but you will certainly make the corner of the world you have the opportunity to touch, better than how you found it.