Insure yourself against worry

That’s the most prudent investment you can make and it costs nothing!

A friend asked me if Vaani and I have health insurance. I smiled back at the question. Life’s been so tough on the material front, we have never managed to cover living expenses in a long, long time. (Read more here: Fall Like A Rose Petal). When work does come in, there is always a backlog of basics to be met or paid for; so, we have never really been able to commit to any long-term health or retirement-related plans. Besides, we can’t even contemplate investing in ourselves unless we begin to repay and pay off all our debt.

Now, that’s a practical, real-world answer. Let me also share a spiritual perspective here. The last time we held health or Life insurance policies was over 10 years ago. Interestingly, in this past decade, neither of us has ever been pinned down by the insecurity that we are not covered. And the only reason I can think of is that we both have learnt not to worry. We understand the futility of worrying. So, when a worrying thought arises in us, we talk to each other; together we watch the thought arise and subside. We don’t pick it up and so it does not linger on, haunting us.

Even so, worrying about one’s health is a very natural response as you age. At 50-something, both of us have all the niggling issues that comes with an aging body. For instance, I have been advised a surgery and we don’t have the means for it. A visit to our ophthalmologist is long overdue for the same reason. A diabetic condition and a few unattended dental repairs make things no easier. But we understand that such is Life. As you age, your body will report wear and tear. If we had the means, we could have fixed them. But we don’t have the means. Then why worry about them? When my friend heard this point of view, he paused for a moment and then popped the next, inevitable, question: “What will you do when you are laid up in hospital and require an immediate, Life-saving, surgery?” I smiled at him again. My response is simple: why worry about what has not happened yet? Again, if we had had the means, we too would have invested in a plan that could have covered our age-related medical needs. But we don’t have the means. So, again, why worry about the yet-to-arrive, unborn, future? We trust Life implicitly. Let Life take care of us – after all, to quote Khalil Gibran, we are Life’s longing for itself!

This phase in our Life has taught me and Vaani that the most relevant, important, insurance we must all have is to insure ourselves against worry. And that insurance does not require a material premium at all. It costs nothing. It only requires that you trust the process of Life, understand the futility of worrying and stay prepared, ever-ready, to die. When you live this way, whether you have niggling problems or excruciating circumstances, you can only be living fully, happily!