Sick speechless

I've been sick this week.

I am not good at the state of being unwell. Instead of lying around sipping Ginger Ale watching bad television, glad to have a break, I lament the chores I won't cross off my To-Do list and begrudge the sun for shining since I can't be out in the yard pruning the fruit trees or going for a run. But I'm trying to listen to my body, which this week has been screaming, "Your toddler has infected you with germs! Stay in bed! Drink more Pedialyte!"

I was relieved to have enough energy to tune in to the State of Union address. I streamed it on the laptop while the girls and I ate dinner. I figured it was educational, and therefore okay to have it on at the table (I grew up eating a lot of dinners in front of the TV, which is probably why now I insist we all sit down together without the TV, newspapers, books, etc. and actually converse with one another at meal times).

Emma got into it right away. She was interested in the crowd assembling, if Sasha and Malia would be there and what the President would say. A few minutes into the speech, as Obama discussed the difficulty that lie ahead, Emma emoted, "Wow. He's like Aslan."

As we sat there watching, I realized that I was also very sick during President Obama's Inaugural Speech last year. Doug had taken the girls to school because I was totally out of it, dragged me to the couch to watch the speech and put me back to bed when it was over. Is is just the time of year? That after the rush of the holiday season and Emma's birthday, my body finally gets permission to crash?

I'm not sure what it all means. But I did feel inspired by Obama's passion, his sense of humor and his ability to detach himself from the perceptions of his job performance. I love his message of hope.

I eventually got better after last year's illness, and I'll get better after this one. It seems that from Obama's speech, he's hoping our country can recover from the woes it's suffered. I guess listening to him speak is the best thing someone under the weather can do--to feel that at the very least, one person is the symbol of the resilience of our nation. If we can all hold on to the belief that we can rally (and really, anybody who's had the flu knows that once all that yucky stuff comes out, you do get better), and if we can rally together, then eventually we will all become stronger. Individually and as a whole.

Wow. I guess he really is like Aslan because I just compared having the flu with the state of our nation. Or I've had too much Pedialyte.