This weekend I've put up my holiday decorations.  It's a bit earlier than previous years but the next few weekends will not have much free time for this type of activity.  Last year I decided to purchase an artificial tree rather than having the "real thing" and while I was at it, I made sure it was a truly artificial-looking tree.  The best way I can describe it is white twigs with little bumps on the ends of the branches.  However, when I put all my collection of ornaments on the tree, it really looks quite spectacular!  This endeavor consumes the better part of a day but certainly is worth the effort as I stand back and admire the twinkling lights shining on the glass ornaments.  However, as another year passes, I am also very aware of the physical decline of my body.  The aches take a little longer to go away each year.  I'm also aware that I'm using muscles that I don't normally access and they are in rebellion for longer periods of time each season.  I can understand why a person would reach a point where it isn't worth the effort.  And that's like a lot of our activities.   The pain of doing is greater than the pain of not doing.  Slowly we stop being as active as we once were and those small decisions to ease back build up until the day comes when we are either heavier than we would like to be (because we didn't change our eating habits), or we lose touch with skills we once had (like my inability to bowl a strike),or we lose touch with whole groups of people and become more isolated, with our world constricted.  So each day I try to make a conscious choice to stay connected, to push myself just a bit farther than I'd like to go, to remember I'm alive, vibrant and able to make today worthwhile.