Why do we only notice our bodies when they break?

March 14, 2026 — 2:30am

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A minor disability, provided it is short-lived, has this one, simple virtue: it should make us realise how lucky we are. Most of us, for most of the time, come equipped with a body that does its work without complaint. We forget, most of the time, to give that useful body the thanks it deserves.

Most of the time, for example, I can make two cups of tea and walk them down the hallway to the bedroom, whistling as I walk. I can load and unload a dishwasher in under five minutes. I can rise from a chair without looking like a Bulgarian weightlifter attempting a particularly challenging manoeuvre. “Will he make it? Wait for it! Yes, he’s upright, he’s done it!”

Now, for two or three weeks, I’m on crutches, informing my newly installed knee as to its future responsibilities. Life, for a moment, is incredibly tedious. I can carry a book from room to room, but not if it’s a thick one. Putting on my compression socks involves the squawks and screeches you’d associate with two cats fighting. Getting up and down steps requires complex mnemonics about whether to first use........

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