Welcome to the Present
Welcome to 2024. We’re in the present – obviously – but many of us grew up in an era when 2024 would have represented the distant future represented by supercomputers, Artificial Intelligence, flying cars, and, perhaps, intergalactic travel…Well, some of it came true.
Celebrating 20 Years in Chiropractic Practice
Today is January 4, 2024, and I’ll be returning to my office on Monday, January 8th – yes, office space is still a thing in 2024, even though many of you haven’t needed it since the COVID-19 pandemic. 2024 represents the 20th-anniversary of my chiropractic graduation. We were always told that ‘private practice’ is called “practice” because it takes a lot of practice to get good at something, especially something as complicated as healthcare. I never quite appreciated that the ‘practice’ that my educators spoke of was a lifelong journey. I appreciate this concept fully now. In the beginning (of my practice, not ‘the beginning of time’), I thought ‘practice’ meant getting better at certain skills, like spinal manipulation or diagnostic tests. I thought at some point the practice would reach perfection and then I’d coast on my skills healing patients with the ease we have walking down the street once we’ve perfected the skill of just walking just a few years of life. I now understand that there is no perfection. There is only the journey of trying to be better.
A Glimpse into My Holiday Adventures
Over the 2023/2024 Christmas holidays, I spent eight days with my family in Florida. I enjoyed many of my favourite hobbies/activities/enjoyments during this break from practice life. If you’ve been a patient of mine for several years, you likely already know of the simple pleasures I enjoy in this world. My love of live music collided with my pride and joy – my son, Nathan. I took Nathan to his first concert: Bob Weir & the Wolf Bros. That’s the same Bob Weir of the famed Grateful Dead. That’s right, I got to enjoy both my son and the musical scene of the Grateful Dead. Days later, my wife, son, and I then laughed all night long at a live comedy show (Nate Bargatze) on New Year’s Eve. During the days, I swam, walked on the beach, exercised, and finished the latest epic fantasy book I’d been reading: Oathbringer – book 3 of Brandon Sanderson’s Stormlight Archive series.
New Year’s Aspirations: Writing and Sharing Insights
I’m inherently an introvert (although I do come out of my shell in your presence in my office), so I like to keep life pretty simple. I love my family, sports, music, books, and exercise (and coffee). During the holidays, I got this crazy idea that I’d write more this year. I always intend to write more, but then life gets busy. This isn’t so much a New Year’s resolution, as much as it’s just aspirational. So, beginning with this blog entry, I hope to write quite a bit more than I have been in recent years. I plan on writing about what twenty years in chiropractic practice have taught me. I will likely include some sports clichés, music references, and life lessons I extrapolate from my favourite science fiction and fantasy novels.
Embarking on a Fitness Journey
Spoiler alert: I will be writing a lot about the role and power of exercise. During my holiday (and preceding and following), I committed to exercising daily. This has become the next step in my exercise journey. To quote my current favourite author, Brandon Sanderson, from ‘Oathbringer': “…the most important step a person can take is always the next one”. Committing to my daily exercise routine was not my first step in my fitness journey, nor is it my last. It was simply my next step. My purpose as a chiropractor is to help you achieve a higher level of health. I can and will do this in several ways, including the expected hands-on care, diagnostics, and exercise advice. I can also do this with inspiration, motivation, education, and communication. Today’s blog post is the next step on this journey. Take the journey with me.
Dr.B