The value of good health

The past few days I have been continually reminded how blessed my family is to have good health. Sure, we get the occasional cold, and all my kids have vomited on me a few times, but as far as chronic health issues or allergies, all five of us are completely clear. This is something I usually take for granted, but this week I have learned that good health is a required part of our move to Spain. You see, to move overseas, every family member has to go through an in-depth medical and dental screening. Not just my husband-- ALL of us, even the baby. At first I thought this was to make things more convenient (and affordable) for the military. If someone needs specific prescription medication that will not be available at an overseas duty station, then they will not be allowed to accompany the military member overseas. If someone is going to need serious dental work in the next year, that will also prevent them from going. Thankfully, I am not pregnant, but they usually do not transport a woman overseas if she is more than 29 weeks along, because of a concern in a gap in her prenatal coverage. Also, you cannot have any past reports of abuse, child custody arrangements, or unresolved court cases. We have to all be up to date on immunizations, physicals, and dental check-ups. Needless to say, that has meant a LOT of paperwork and running around getting appointments, signatures, and copies of things to verify that we are all healthy.

I have two reflections on this. The first came from a meeting with our relocation adviser on base. He said the reason for the screenings is not just to make things more convenient for the military, but because we will be in a position of being an American minority on a Spanish naval base. In a way, our entire family is becoming ambassadors to Spain! They only want to send healthy, stable families who seem unlikely to have domestic problems or medical emergencies. That was a interesting positive spin on the medical screening process. Of course I like to think my family is among the best of the best, even if I can't really take personal responsibility for our health. I mean sure, I make a lot of effort to cook fresh healthy meas and stay active and strong myself, but I realize that our basic sound constitution is a blessing from God. So I pray that God will continue to bless us so we can be good ambassadors!

Secondly, as I was tracking down my children's shot records and verifying that I personally am immune to tetanus, MMR, variacella, and polio, I realized how important it was that we all had these immunizations. I know there are some people who are against vaccinating children, and that's not a debate I want to start here, but I personally am totally ok with it. None of my kids have had any adverse reactions to shots, but they would certainly have adverse reactions to those viruses if they were exposed to them without being immunized! I know that some people feel they are protecting or sheltering their kids by not immunizing, but how long does that sheltering last? Do you homeschool all the way through college? Are they ever allowed to travel? Because eventually, kids become adults who will make their own choices and have their own experiences, and if they aren't immunized, they are seriously limited in what they will be allowed to do and where they can go. Is it worth it to me to give the kids a few shots so that they will be able to experience living in another country for 3 years? Totally! And now we don't have to worry about them getting chicken pox while we are there. :-) I'm thankful that my parents gave me the immunizations as a child, which let me travel to Europe before, and will allow me to live there now. Thanks Mom and Dad! :-)