Health Is Wealth
As a young man, I seriously wanted to be wise like King Solomon from the Bible and the Greek philosopher Socrates. So, I would constantly read Proverbs or Plato’s dialogues of Socrates because I desired their wisdom to be my own. I thought that through memorizing their teachings I would embody their wisdom and insight. Except the kicker is, my memory was not that good, so I didn’t retain a lot of what they said. As I’ve gotten older, I cannot say I’ve been wise nor continued to seek wisdom. Nonetheless, due to my recent shift to a plant based lifestyle for my health, the quote, “Health is Wealth” has made me reminisce to days of old. This is one of those cryptic quotes much like King Solomon’s proverbs so condense but also full with meaning that has popped back into my vocabulary. In turn, it means I hold ‘my life’ in the highest regard.
Health and Wealth Defined
The English dictionary defines health as, “the state of being free from illness or injury”. Wealth is defined as, “an abundance of valuable possessions or money” or “a plentiful supply of a particular desirable thing”. Both words are nouns inferring a state of being. Your health and the quality thereof is your responsibility. So, if ‘you’ are not 100% diligent in trying to prevent illness or injury, you can’t possibly be being responsible. Therefore, if your health is not the most important thing to you, you are in many respects worth less because you don’t value your own life. So, this quote beckons us all to take care of ‘ourselves’ because we are the wealth!
The most valuable thing you have, you already have, it’s your body. What’s the value of your entire body? It’s priceless. ― KRS One
Who’s Quote?
I thought who was the person who said, “Health is Wealth”, and what was their mindset at that time. Google has Ralph Waldo Emerson quoted as saying, “The First Wealth is Health”. The historical record explains he witnessed a lot of his loved ones dying young. Three of his siblings died in childhood. When he was eight, his dad died of stomach cancer. Then two of his brothers and his wife died very young with tuberculosis. I think seeing people you love get sick and dying can give you that type of perspective to say just what really is valuable in this world. I’ve seen my fair share of the same and I don’t think I need for something to happen directly to me before I get the message that we should value our health.
Money Over Health
In today’s culture, the mentality that “Health is Wealth” runs counter to how wealth is conveyed. People synonymous with the term wealth are the likes of Warren Buffett, Jeff Bezos, and Bill Gates. Surely, no one is attributing their wealth with their state of health. “Health is Wealth” is a statement that implies an attribute of wealth that if you got that, you’re set. Except, most of us take no solace in these words because we don’t feel set. In fact, we would rather the billion dollar net worth of the people above!
No Person Above
Let’s re-frame this thought though to show how applicable we all are to the laws of nature. Could the aforementioned use their money and resources to just buy back their health if they got really sick? You know like fix them back to how they were before they became afflicted. If they (or you) make bad decisions regarding their health, there is no amount of money they can just give to reverse that or potentially save their life. Especially, if they became sick but weren’t yet ready to check out on life. So, if it’s a transaction they can’t even make, wouldn’t that be more so the case for those of us with substantially less money and resources
When diet is wrong, medicine is of no use; when diet I said correct, medicine is of no need. ― Ayurvedic Proverb
Heart disease, cancer, stroke, and diabetes are amongst the biggest killers of American people and they don’t discriminate. They’re going do what they do. Irregardless of the person(s), he/she who violate their own natural biology expose themselves to these chronic diseases. In turn, these diseases are going to act in accordance with their natural biological mechanisms. However, these diseases are mostly preventable with a Whole Food Plant Based(WFPB) lifestyle. Although, this is not an attractive lifestyle when you value consuming animal products and highly processed foods over your own well being.
I’ve Neglected Too!
So, how many of us try to ensure we are healthy and stay healthy? I can say that I hadn’t given much thought to my well-being given that I was so enamored, like many of you, with the Standard American Diet(SAD). I was only seeking wealth from the perspective of accumulating material assets such as real estate, securities, precious metals, businesses, and savings. Not to say that none of that is necessary. But, absent from this equation was a real focus on ‘me’ that makes it all go. I wasn’t focused on investing in my health at anywhere near the degree to which I was on all those other aforementioned assets. Yet, if I got really sick, my life would be at risk! So, those assets are the least of which I would be concerned!
Unlike King Solomon or Socrates, I was trying to get rich in possessions. I thought it could carve out a bit of security for my wife and I in a more and more insecure world. But because the SAD is the “norm”, I didn’t think I was neglecting my own health in the process. Boy was I blind! If you are not looking out for yourself, this system will sell you poison. We are continually lulled to sleep by the “norm”. Some more so than others. However, some of us get woke like Neo from the “Matrix”. We refuse the SAD because this quote “Heath is Wealth” becomes real for us.
Being Sick Is Expensive
I can paint a real grim story of what happens to people that get sick, but I’m not. I think we all have someone we know or ourselves who goes through this. The impacts physically, mentally, and financially are devastating. I had a revelation that the SAD I was adhering to was a liability to my health point blank period. The linkages of the SAD to chronic illness and premature death just cannot be ignored if you truly see that health is wealth. Due to that, I shifted to a WFPB lifestyle. I no longer let short term pleasure outweigh my health and well-being.
In Closing
I said in a Facebook post, “… smart does not mean wise.” I said this because even smart people can be completely oblivious to how much sense it makes to take utmost care of your health. I may not ever be wise as King Solomon or Socrates, but acting against “norms” by adopting WFPB lifestyle was the wisest thing I’ve done in my life. The quote, “Health is Wealth” are not just words for me now, but instead actionable steps I take every day so that its meaning resonates in my lifestyle. The question becomes, how about yours?
