When we go through a break-up, a loss, an illness or an injury, bones break… ligaments separate… tendons tear… skin flares… spirits dwindle… hearts ache… or minds disassociate. Anything losing its togetherness becomes unhealthy. Any process towards unity is healing, on the way to recovery, full health and wholeness once again.
Consider times when we were at our best. Most likely, our bodies felt strong, we felt connected to our closest relationships, and our minds felt clear. What did our physical health specifically look like? Who was in our lives on a daily basis? How were we thinking about the opportunities we had in the present moment and along the road ahead? Readiness and steadiness are downstream from togetherness.
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A few years ago, I sat down at a Starbucks with Joaquim Cruz, a former Track-and-Field Olympian from Brazil. We invested a couple hours outside under the sun in San Diego discussing happiness, health, and high performance. As I asked him dozens of questions, all his answers seemed to carry an aura of lightheartedness and seriousness at the same time.
The three main takeaways that still resonate with me today from our conversation:
(1) “The switch is always on.” Joaquim responded with those words when I asked him how he ‘flipped the switch’ right before a race started. What he meant: wherever he was and whatever he was supposed to be doing, he did. In the evenings, the switch was sleep. In the mornings, the switch was hydration and meditation. Throughout the day, the switch was training, recovering, and perfecting his craft.
(2) His nutrition as a child and as an Olympian was the same. Joaquim grew up in a one-bedroom house with several siblings. With little to zero technology, his family lived a simple life. Almost every night, he would have small portions of carbohydrates, fats, and protein — not much, yet more than enough. “Mark, guess how I ate the year I won a gold medal in the 800-meter sprint at the 1984 Summer Olympics?” “The same portions?” I inquired. “That’s right, not much, yet more than enough.”
(3) To win, all the relationships in our lives must be aligned. In 1984, Joaquim had a baby with the love of his life. Despite the cost, family members and friends traveled from Brazil to Los Angeles, California to see him finish in first place. “I had everyone I loved watching me compete,” Joaquim said, “and I felt extremely close to God.” Our greatest performances call for strict training and discipline in our nutritional lifestyle… they also require the right relationships where all aspects are in alignment.
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Injuries, illnesses, and bouts of dis-ease are inevitable. Magnitude of recovery must equate to severity of stress. All traumas, wounds of various sizes, heal over time so long as we maintain appropriate aim.
Time heals.
Recovery makes the difference.
Mentality matters most.
“Some time later, Jesus went up to Jerusalem for one of the Jewish festivals. Now there is at Jerusalem by the sheep market a pool, which is called in the Hebrew tongue Bethesda, having five porches. Here a great number of disabled people used to lie—the blind, the lame, the paralyzed. One who was there had been an unhealthy for thirty-eight years. When Jesus saw him lying there and learned that he had been in this condition for a long time, he asked him, “Do you want to get well?” — John 5:1-6
What a powerful question! A tremendous amount of attention could come from being under the weather. Loved ones tend to dote on those who claim to be unwell. Therefore, this question is worth pondering and answering honestly, “Do you want to get well?”
As the adage goes: misery loves company. Leaders often walk alone. The perfect harmony exists between too much company and too much time alone.
Like trees growing alongside one another, not too close their roots constrict individual growth and not too far away such that neither provides shade for the other, the psychology of healthy beings involves individuation — the developmental process of becoming an integrated, stable, and whole identity [swaying his and her branches in the wind alongside others], divinely dancing together.
Healthy plants need nutritious soil, sunlight, and water.
Healthy beings need nutritious food, relationships, and water
Who and what makes us feel whole, and why?
Mark Glicini
Mark Glicini: May 14, 2026 6:57:00 PM
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