What are your problems?

I had an interesting coffee conversation with someone a couple of days ago. We started talking about general interests, work, life, philosophies, struggles, etc.

As most conversations proceed, we took turns talking about “our stories”. At the end though, the person told me that their brother has muscular dystrophy (https://www.cdc.gov/ncbddd/musculardystrophy/). This can happen when someone inherits a faulty gene from one or both parents.

The person went on to tell me that their parents already know that their son is probably never going to find a partner because of their condition, never will be able to lead a “normal” life, and that, when they compare this problem with some of the other ones that they have, everything else feels small and insignificant.

This story has stuck with me since then. Not that I didn’t already know similar stories but sometimes you need a reminder. A reminder to be SO THANKFUL for all the things that I have. A reminder that I am privileged. A reminder that I have an amazing family. A reminder that I have some really good friends. A reminder that I have more than I need. A reminder that I need to stop worrying about small things because guess what? Everything is small until you face the real, big challenges of life.