Lessons from a woman named Claire Reid

Her name is Claire Reid and she is from Denham Town. Claire is 63 years old. She won a dance competition at the annual senior citizens' party hosted this month by my service club, the Rotary Club of Kingston.

What makes this win extra special is that Claire has only one leg. She outdanced her formidable opponents and I am confident that she could outdance many able-bodied persons. Without the support of a cane or crutches, she hopped, wined and even performed dance moves on the ground like a skilled dancehall queen. As I watched her, she inspired me.

When I spoke with her after the competition she described how she had lost her leg trying to avoid a car 20 years earlier. She also told me that she was a mother of two children.

Many of us have much to be grateful for this Christmas, but sometimes our vision is clouded by financial and other hardships. Sometimes we forget the little things to be thankful about. Sometimes we live our lives half-heartedly, focusing more on what we lack rather than what we have and are given.

Claire inspired me because despite her obvious disability she was confident enough to actively participate in a public event in a public way. Instead of focusing on the leg she had lost, she had learnt to become an excellent dancer on the one that she had left.

Don't complain

Can we as women learn anything from Claire? I think we can. We will all be faced with challenges throughout life, and yes, sometimes we may feel the need to share or even complain to others about our problems. But then what? Do we use our adversity as a ladder to reach greater heights or as a barrier to prevent us from moving forward? Do we spend our life focusing on the talents that we lack or do we perfect the ones that we have? Do we live a life of gratitude and optimism or do we sink into bitterness, cynicism and pessimism.

Be optimistic

Can being optimistic change our lives and our health? According to research conducted in the United States on women who were past the menopause (post-menopausal women), optimistic women had less hypertension, diabetes, smoked less and lived longer, compared to pessimistic women. Other studies suggest that it may decrease rates of depression, distress, help people to cope better with hardship and stress and even improve resistance to the common cold.

I did not ask Claire if she considered herself an optimist, but I think actions speak louder than words. As we embark on a New Year, maybe we can start cultivating more positive attitudes and thoughts. Maybe we will realise that in spite of everything, life is beautiful. Like Claire, maybe we can be victorious despite our limitations. Thank you, Claire, for allowing me to share your story.

Dr Monique Rainford is a consulting obstetrician and gynaecologist; email: yourhealth@gleanerjm.com.