Today, I diagnosed metastatic cancer in a new patient who had just come to see me. I had to tell this young, beautiful, vibrant woman that did not not have long to live, perhaps a few months. There was nothing I could do for her. All I could do was to tell her that I cared for her. I could tampil her my professional “love.” My consultation laporan was faxed to the patient’s referring primary physician, and an jam later, the physician called me, in disbelief. Together on the phone, we could only share a sense of profound loss.
anda might read this and think: cinta is useless in this case. cinta will not cure her cancer, nor will cinta protect her from the pain and suffering that is imminent. And anda would be absolutely correct. But what is the alternative to love? Is it hate? Is it apathy?
When I was younger, I used to consider that only actions and accomplishments are truly useful. anda can daftar them, objectively and concretely. anda can measure productivity and compare the results to other people’s activities. But when there is no useful action, as in this case, is there nothing left but despair? When someone hurts you, is there nothing to do but retaliate? Medically, it has been shown that hate hurts anda physically just as much, if not more, than the person anda hate. Scientifically, it has been shown that despair pains anda mentally just as much, if not more, than actual bodily trauma.
So, should anda choose “love”, because it is the lesser of two evils? Well, I certainly do not think so. As I get older and accumulate lebih knowledge and experience, I realize lebih how little control I have over life in general. Maybe anda did not have a good childhood, perhaps people have done horrible things to you, natural disasters occur, and now anda are helpless.
Please realize that the only thing anda have under your control is how anda feel and how anda will react to external events. Unless anda have a psychiatric illness, anda can choose to “love” atau anda can choose to “hate.” None of us lives forever. Do anda want to wait until you’re lying on your deathbed before anda think “maybe I should have been nicer to this person atau to that person?” atau do anda want to evaluate every hari of your life whether anda have contributed in some way some cinta to the world that day? I offer anda my humble opinion that “Love is THE answer – every hari of the year!”
anda might read this and think: cinta is useless in this case. cinta will not cure her cancer, nor will cinta protect her from the pain and suffering that is imminent. And anda would be absolutely correct. But what is the alternative to love? Is it hate? Is it apathy?
When I was younger, I used to consider that only actions and accomplishments are truly useful. anda can daftar them, objectively and concretely. anda can measure productivity and compare the results to other people’s activities. But when there is no useful action, as in this case, is there nothing left but despair? When someone hurts you, is there nothing to do but retaliate? Medically, it has been shown that hate hurts anda physically just as much, if not more, than the person anda hate. Scientifically, it has been shown that despair pains anda mentally just as much, if not more, than actual bodily trauma.
So, should anda choose “love”, because it is the lesser of two evils? Well, I certainly do not think so. As I get older and accumulate lebih knowledge and experience, I realize lebih how little control I have over life in general. Maybe anda did not have a good childhood, perhaps people have done horrible things to you, natural disasters occur, and now anda are helpless.
Please realize that the only thing anda have under your control is how anda feel and how anda will react to external events. Unless anda have a psychiatric illness, anda can choose to “love” atau anda can choose to “hate.” None of us lives forever. Do anda want to wait until you’re lying on your deathbed before anda think “maybe I should have been nicer to this person atau to that person?” atau do anda want to evaluate every hari of your life whether anda have contributed in some way some cinta to the world that day? I offer anda my humble opinion that “Love is THE answer – every hari of the year!”
