The stonecutter wishes to split a rock. After choosing the right tool, he strikes his hammer at an exact, pre-determined spot on the huge boulder. The blow was not arbitrary or random. He hits precisely at a specific point determined after much study and analysis. But nothing happens. The stonecutter strikes again. No change. The stone does not split.
The stonecutter slams his hammer down again. And again and again. Nothing. Not even a dent or chip in the rock’s surface. His expression is stoic. No worry or confusion. His expression is one of knowing— a faith in himself, his tools, and the laws of the physical world that govern the splitting of large rocks. One hundred blows. Two hundred blows. The rock simply shows no sign of any change, much less breaking in two. But the stonecutter persists.
Then, on the 357th strike, after 356 hits to a rock at exactly the same point without even a previous chip or a scratch, the large boulder splits in two. Success!
But what would have happened if the stonecutter quit after five hits, or ten, or one hundred? It would have been so easy for the stonecutter to say, “This rock is too tough, I better pick another one.” Or maybe, “I must’ve chosen the wrong hammer.” Or, “The spot I picked to hit is wrong. I better choose another spot.” If the stonecutter kept second guessing himself and changed his technique, tool or focus, the rock would never, ever split.
One of my patients, in a testimonial wrote, “After the first two weeks of chiropractic care, I almost didn’t return because it didn’t seem like I was getting any relief. I decided to continue and after three weeks of treatments at three times a week, I started to feel a little better. Now, I am in my second month of care and I can feel myself getting better and better.” This patient, like the stonecutter, stuck with it. He hung in there. He didn’t quit. And in time he reaped the rewards of his commitment.
The drug companies spend billions of dollars every year to convince us that healing and relief should be instantaneous. After a lifetime of ads that promise immediate results through the ingestion of drugs, is there any wonder that our society expects a quick and easy fix to health problems? It is sad that most of us would rather place our trust in a pill. The pill tempts us with speed; no patience required.
Health does not work this way. Healing takes time. Be like the stonecutter. Place your faith in your own body’s ability to heal when you make correct choices about your health and wellness. If it doesn’t happen right away, that’s OK. The healing will happen in its own time, following its own course. It will happen, though! Believe it!
Chiropractic, like the pill, does not heal anything. It’s important to always remember that it is the innate intelligence within our bodies, facilitated by the nervous system, that does all the healing. The spinal adjustments given by a chiropractor only help the patient’s body to heal more effectively, but it always comes from within. And this healing process requires time.
I cringe inside when I hear a person say, “I tried chiropractic and it didn’t work.”
I’ll often ask, “How long did you give it a try?”
Usually the answer is, “Uh, I went in once. But I never noticed any difference.”
The change we desire, the result we want, may not manifest itself right away. We must have patience. We must have faith that the track we are on is the right track and although we don’t see the results immediately, we need to keep swinging that hammer.
When we are faced with health challenges, it is important to always remember that our healing may require great patience.
As Napolean Hill once said, “Effort only fully releases its reward after a person refuses to quit.”
This principle applies to everything. Healing. Athletics. Academics. Business.
And of course, cutting stones.
