I refuse to get it!

Snot.

Sneeze.

Snot

Everyone had it. No one escaped. We called it flu, but it was properly just a pretty bad cold. It takes guts to admit that your raging flu is actually just a cold. More so if you are a proud male. Viral fishermen, bringing back tales of it ‘being this big’ but in reality it was only ‘this big.’ Still, the tiddler was enough to make us feel like crap, and we spent the whole week moaning and groaning in my flat. One evening, surrounded by hundreds of tissues, we sat watching a BBC documentary on the power of the mind. The details of the programme are lost in a hazy, sneeze-inspired vagueness, but I do recall Matt becoming quite inspired by it. This was strange. Matt was a sceptic when it came to anything concerning the metaphysical or unknown, and for him to even acknowledge the programme was a surprise. But that surprise paled in comparison when he then announced:

‘Guys…’

‘I’m going to cure my cold with by mind.’

Something stirred.

It was Wayne.

Buried in a thousand soggy tissues.

‘You’re gonna what?’ He replied, prying one from his forehead.

I just sat there dribbling. The words went in, something clicked, and then something didn’t.
‘I’m gonna do it. I bet my flu goes before yours.’ Matt dribbled back.

And that was that.

A week later, Wayne and I still had our damn colds. Matt didn’t. Matt was fine. Even though Jamie, Wayne, Matt, and myself were pretty much together twenty-four hours a day, Matt was still fine. We ate the same things, which normally consisted of anything that was in our local supermarkets promotional zone. This month it was a big bag of walker’s crisps and a salsa dip, all for 99p.

Bargain.

So Matt had seen something in this crazy documentary, that lead him to believe that he could cure his ailment. Everyday, he told himself that he wouldn’t be ill, and he remained healthy, as well as curing his cold. The next year, he once again told himself that he wasn’t going to be ill. And once again, he remained healthy-whilst the rest of us suffered in snot-I might add. The third year, he forgot all about it, and then fell ill. Now, I know that this all sounds rather corny. I can understand you thinking that. But believe it or not, there is clinical evidence that our minds can actually have an effect on our physical bodies. You must have heard of a ‘self fulfilling prophecy’, the term used for when we tell ourselves something over and over, and it becomes real. So, this was one of them. Matt had told himself to be well, and lo and behold he was. Now, on certain occasions, and in a certain light, my good friend Matt looks like Jesus. He has the long hair, and the beard, etc. We have ridiculed him about this fact for some time now. But unfortunately, that’s as far as the similarities go. Matt isn’t Jesus.

Although…

He did cure the sick. The sick being himself of course, but in any case he did it. And he then proved that he could do it again. Could be a coincidence. Could be. But research shows that the mind can do this. With the right application, and a true will to do so, we can achieve certain things. I’m not saying that we can all become Jedi’s overnight. Or that we can all become supermen. What I am saying is that a certain ‘attitude’ towards an illness can have a remarkable effect on the outcome. I’m sure most of you are aware of that. Everyone has had times in their lives where they reap the benefits of positivity. And the same goes for negativity. The mind isn’t fussy; it doesn’t have a preference either. It does what you tell it. You have a choice.
 
I believe that.

Matt believed it.

But, do you believe it?

A positive mental attitude can have an enormous effect on a person’s life.
It’s just a case of being exposed to that knowledge. The information is yours to do what you will with, once you have it. So give it a go. See what happens.

But maybe you already knew about all this. You have read books, and are aware of potential within yourself. But for some reason, you just don’t put it into practice.

Which brings me merrily to my next story…