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The price of a breath

A short reflection on counting your blessings

August 6, 2025 14:41
GettyImages-1235860847.jpg
Covid patient Salvatore breathes oxygen through a mask at the sub-intensive care unit of the Casalpalocco hospital, south of Rome, on October 13, 2021. - In one Rome hospital, the vast majority of Covid-19 patients in intensive care are unvaccinated, and many are urging Italian anti-vaxers to get the jab. Salvatore says he was a big supporter of vaccines but had not yet had his coronavirus jab before he fell gravely ill. (Photo by Alberto PIZZOLI / AFP) (Photo by ALBERTO PIZZOLI/AFP via Getty Images)

You may have heard the story of a 93-year-old man who recovered from corona.

The hospital clerk told him he had to pay out of pocket for one day in the hospital; it would cost him over $5,000 for use of the ventilator. The old man began to cry.

The people around him tried to reassure him. “Don’t worry, everything will be fine. It’s only money.”

The elderly man then said, “I’m not crying because of the money I have to pay. I can afford it. I’m crying because I just realised that I have been breathing God’s air for 93 years and I never paid a penny for it.

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