Here’s a transcript of the video:
“Hey there.
I just want to give you a bit of an update here. I know Chris let you know that I fell down the stairs on Christmas Eve.
I don’t do anything halfway. I fell down 15 stairs and landed on my back, fortunately. I think that’s better than landing on your face. And I was out for about two minutes.
I was in the hospital for a couple of weeks, receiving care from the NHS. I have a wonderful memory of being awakened at various hours of the night to be given medication by the lovely people who were so tender and sweet and professional. It was a real eye-opener to see how the NHS works.
And now that I’m home, Chris is taking marvelous care of me. I worry sometimes that it’s occupying him too much, but we work it out. So I’m on the mend, and I hope I’ll be up to speed in another two weeks or so.
It’s hard to state what this all meant to me, because it really was a wake-up call in many ways. Not because I fell down the steps, but because I was very aware of my mortality and my fragility. It’s an interesting thing to encounter at a certain age. I’m 81 now, so everyone’s expecting me to fall down the stairs, but I wasn’t. In a way, it was an eye-opener in terms of reminding myself that I don’t have that long on this planet.
I’m grateful for the people in my life who’ve rallied to take care of me, the chief among them being Chris. I’m grateful that I’m still alive.
I know that we live in this crazy, fucked up world. We all know that. We’re all conscious of what’s wrong in the world today. But what’s right for me is that I’m still alive, that I’ve seen love in my life and continue to see it. I know the people that are important to me. And that’s a huge, huge benefit.
I think it’s important for all of us to keep focusing on kindness during these difficult times. You can find a refuge in kindness, and I think you should. It doesn’t matter whether you fell down the steps or not. Just focus on kindness. It will get you through every time. That’s really what I have to say: kindness, love. That’s all we have.
I’m grateful to still be here. And I’m grateful for you who are listening to this. And I’m grateful for my dog, who just walked into the scene.
Thank you for being here. Thank you so much for being here.”
