We don’t know we’re born!

On Sunday evening Mike and I watched the moving documentary about Harry Patch (available to view now on BBC iplayer), the last survivor of the first World War, who died recently aged 111 years. If you missed the programme, check out BBC’s website to read his obituary.

Those of us who were born after World War II have no comprehension of what it must have been like to have lived through one war, let alone two! The first World War must have been unimaginably tough and for Harry Patch to have survived both to reach such an amazing age is extraordinary and inspiring.

As we watched the programme I felt immensely grateful – and a little guilty - for the fact that we live in a country where we have so much and everyday life is relatively straight-forward. Then I watched BBC Breakfast the next morning to see a soldier who had lost both his legs and his right arm in Afghanistan and who had come to terms with his disabilities, worked hard to learn to walk on two artificial legs and have a cheerful, smiling face with no feeling of self-pity or regret. What had happened was part of life and sometimes life is tough. Really tough.

My job is to help people to lose weight and become fitter and I am privileged to be in a position to do that but we should all take a moment to pause and re-consider whether we really want to eat that extra bar of chocolate or packet of crisps or drink that extra glass of wine which isn’t very good for us. We have choices and it is really important that we treat our body with the respect it deserves, to keep it healthy and fit. We should be grateful that we have two legs and two arms to be able to do our everyday tasks without even thinking about it.

So, long may we remember you, Harry Patch, and may you help us never to forget how fortunate we are to be alive in the 21st Century when life is good and worth living to the full. We really don’t know we’re born, do we?