I noticed winter holiday decorations in the stores the day after Halloween. There is no way of escaping the presence of commercial seasonal promotions.

Yet this time of year still triggers memory and reflection.

I recall struggling to a Thanksgiving dinner a few years back with symptoms of stage IV multiple myeloma before I knew I had a disease with a name.

I had been unwell for months and clueless about my condition. It took another two weeks before I would be diagnosed. What a relief to finally name my problem. A Chinese proverb tells us: “The beginning of wisdom is to call things by their right names.”

I was told there was no cure - treatment would give me some reprieve. They mentioned that I may never be able to lift more than a few pounds due to bone fractures. Based on the way I felt, I had no reason to doubt any of this.

I was concerned that my managed healthcare insurance provided mediocre care, and I did not have the resources to seek out the cutting edge best. I did not know that the process of healing works in mysterious ways, and the information I received was an average prognosis that did not apply to an individual person.

Perspective is a point of view that changes depending upon where you are observing from. Over the last eight years with multiple myeloma, my perspective has changed. I carry the shadow of disease like a delicate flower along with six years of remission without drugs. I actually lift heavy things now and then.

Diagnosis feels limiting and scary. Naming multiple myeloma was the beginning of wisdom for me.

Good health and fortune are not always the best medicine for waking up to your own life. People who exercise and eat calculated diets of protein, vitamins, and minerals may become sick and die. Devoted, caring individuals who serve the world are suddenly taken in tragic accidents.

Everyone has perspective to know that things you once believed to be true have proven otherwise. Actions that are viewed as mistakes can turn out to be just the right thing. Mystery is a name for anything we cannot make sense of – anything we cannot see, hear, or recognize. The beginning of wisdom is learning to listen and see.

I do not need a turkey dinner to be grateful for the perspective to know that my point of view shifts as I see and hear more - as I remain open to what is unknown.

Happy Thanksgiving to all of you!