hug - verb - to embrace someone with one's arms; to express affection (Google).
Just in case you didn't already know, one hug can make a huge difference in the quality of life. Remember the adage, "An apple a day keeps the doctor away"? Well, sub in "hug" for "apple," and you have an analogous aphorism that is completely true. According to RWJ Barnabas Health, hugs boost oxytocin, which is associated with feeling good. They also reduce anxiety, chronic pain, and high blood pressure. In addition, a hearty embrace increases feelings of belonging and safety and strengthens your immune system. In short, if you substituted a sweet hug for sugar on a daily basis, you'd probably live a lot longer.
Hugs can be commonplace for some naturally affectionate people who are fortunate enough to have relations and friends who are accessible and agreeable to hugging. (Don't forget that getting near anyone during the pandemic was verboten. My, have times changed.)
However, there is a lot of single, unfortunate souls out there who rarely have the opportunity to hug, souls such as homeless people, who are vulnerable to myriad illnesses. In any case, most don't think of bestowing affection upon those strangers living in poverty. But maybe some do?
When was the last time you hugged a homeless person?
Actually, not to one up you, but I hugged one today. Yes, I hugged a homeless person. Being that I was in the right place at the right time (a rarity for most), the chance arose and I took it. I was volunteering as a server at a restaurant specifically for the indigent in Venice, California. Admittedly, I was reluctant to accept the risky invitation at first. After all, the man was a stranger off of the streets. For a few seconds, Fear stepped in and tried to talk me out of the embrace. The man could have body odor, lice, some incurable, communicable disease. As a member of the wait staff, perhaps I wasn't permitted to touch the clients? I probably wasn't. But then the brave side of me took over. Envisioning myself as a lay version of my idol Mother Theresa, I opened my arms after Alex, an elderly regular with a scraggly, white beard and yellowing smile, stood up from chair, asked me if it would be okay, and reached out to cuddle me. I not only let him; I returned the favor. Few took notice of the anomaly as it was so brief, but he and I felt instantly appeased. The volume of sunlight that filled the room increased from ten to eleven. In short, I took a risk, and it paid off. I made someone sans much to be happy for, very happy.
Now will I be walking down Lincoln Boulevard in Venice hugging as many of the homeless as possible? Probably not. But I wish I had more in the way of courage to do so. Mother Theresa would have. Then again, hugging for the sake of hugging was most likely in her job description. If not, she wrote it into it. Maybe it is something we can all do. Write it into our personal job descriptions. Hug the daylights of someone you know or don't know at all without being stingy about it.
#word-to-words, #slice-of-life, #blog, #blogging, #editorial, #reading, #vocabulary, #ReadersMagnet, #spilled thoughts, #personal-essay, #writing community, #writing, #truth, #society, #hugging, #love, #affection