I remember John Candy from movies like “Stripes“, “Cool Runnings” and “Planes, Trains and Automobiles” (where he played Del, the shower curtain ring salesman) and how he made so many people laugh. That was his gift to everyone around him. He stopped giving that gift when he died from a heart attack at 43, attributed to his lifelong battle with obesity. After his death, The Laugh Factory honored Candy and a fellow comedian, Bill Hicks who had died a few day earlier, with a sign on the roof that said, “Rest In Peace; Make God Laugh”.
We could do with a lot more laughter in this world, but John Candy is gone. According to Reel Review, “John often found himself on crash diets, and even joined gyms on many occasions. The diets were always short-lived however, and John would spring back to his natural cruising weight of 325 pounds.” Before his death on March 4, 1994 on a set in Durango, Mexico, his weight swelled. “Against the advice of his doctors, John would allow his girth to swell to 375 pounds with a waistline of 59 inches. He would bring his own chef to the Durango set vowing that he’d eat healthy, but he would fall back into his old unhealthy eating habits.”
Could John Candy be here today? He would have turned 59 on October 31st, so probably. Are there other people like John Candy who have other gifts that they could be giving to the world whose lives are cut short by the complications of obesity and other health issues related to not maintaining our health? Absolutely. Can we help them? Absolutely – if we are “on the bus”.
You may not remember the memorable phrase used by the Merry Pranksters started by Ken Kesey. They endlessly repeated the phrase, “You’re either on the bus, or you’re off the bus” as they made their psychedelic cross country journey.
As Team Beachbody Coaches, we are on a journey, too, that is a mission to spread the benefits of regular exercise, good nutrition and positive lifestyle choices and it is a “trip”. Along the way, we can save people like John Candy so that he could be still bringing laughter into our lives.
Do you want to be on the bus with us or off the bus? Being on the bus and saving people’s lives isn’t for everyone. Is it right for you? If you think that “being on the bus” is right for you, then click here to join us. All Aboard!
