Thoughts from the Happy Fat Guy

In every life, there are moments that shake us. Moments that rock us to our very core. These moments generally offer us an opportunity to learn and grow. There are lessons to be learned in the painful moments we encounter. The problem sometimes is that we are so blinded by the moment that we loose the ability to see beyond it. I experienced one of those moments this week.

Last week, a good friend of mine died. This was a man who appeared to be in good health. He was relatively young and in good shape. No history of health issues. He felt like he had the flu. Two days later, his wife took him to the hospital. He died as he was being evaluated in the emergency room. The news of his death was one of those moments that knock the breath out of you.

Why do I mention this? What could it have to do with weight loss surgery? Simply this, I realized that life is too short to be tied to my obesity. None of us knows how much time we will be given on this Earth. But the time we have is ours to make choices with.

Do I want to continue to live with the restrictions that come with being overweight? Do I want to continue to let my weight dictate the decisions I make on a daily basis? Do I want to allow my weight to impact not only me, but my family as well? I don't know how many Big Mac's I am away from a heart attack, but do I really want to find out?  

Up to this point of my life, I have allowed my weight to win the battle.  I have quit, I have surrendered, and until now, I had accepted that this is one fight I am not meant to win. This surgery is more than a tool. It is me standing up and saying that I will continue to fight. Who knows, after the surgery I could be the skinny guy that gets hit by a bus. But what I have realized is that what matters is how I live the moments until that point. Am I going to live defeated, accepting this half life as the best there is? Or I am going to leave this Earth knowing that I took full advantage of the time I was given?