The Will to Live
I had the great fortune to meet an incredibly courageous man
last week. His name is Poris and he is my ex-wife Martha’s cousin.
Poris experienced an incredibly traumatic accident in about
1992. He was hit by a car in Bogota,
Colombia. The
place where he was thrown was in water where he laid for a few hours with no
assistance. Water seeped into his head. Several bones were broken in numerous
places. His brain had been saturated with water.
Arriving at the hospital he stayed in a coma for about
ninety days. When he came out of the coma the doctors told him he would never
walk or talk again because of brain damage from the water on the brain.
Poris decided not to believe what the doctor’s told him. Of
course he recognized that damage had been done but he decided that their
diagnosis would not determine his fate. Martha, provided Poris with inspirational
books such as Louise Hay (You Can Heal Your Life) Wayne Dyer (Your Erroneous
Zones) and others. Even though it was an incredibly arduous process because the
brain damage affected his eyesight, he made up his mind not to give up.
In order to accomplish certain goals, such as re-learning to
ride a bike, even before he was walking again, Poris bought a bike. He made up
his mind to ride again. Today Poris rides a bike. He exercises every day like
clockwork.
I met Poris when we traveled to Bogota, a huge city, to pick up my Visa to
stay in the country. It is one of the most complex cities that I have ever
driven in. And I have driven in many since I was a professional driver
(part-time) for 30 years. Poris was guiding us. For nearly 14 hours looking for
places for our daughter Juliana to live while in college, Poris patiently told
us directions. He was supposed to be a vegetable, according to doctors.
I found that I was incredibly touched by this man, and his
demonstration of courage. His presence and energy were very calming. He lives
and demonstrates incredible patience. His humor is quick and humble.
As I asked Martha some questions about the accident and
learned the incredible details, that painted a bleak picture for any sort of a
“normal” life, I was deeply touched and inspired. I felt some level of
embarrassment for my times when I have felt self-pity for some of my
challenges. I actually cried as I was driving. Martha said Poris didn’t quite
know what to do. To tried to imagine the strength required to face the
incredible pain and challenge of building a new body and mind through
persistence and dedication and patience. The “miracle man” in the movie The
Secret has an incredible story, but so does Poris. How many other, unknown
heroes are among us?
The evening of my meeting Poris I read from Albert
Schweitzer’s An Anthology. It just so happened I was reading from the chapter
“The Will to Live”. Here is one of the quotes:
I Cling to Life
When my will-to-live begins to think, it sees life as a
mystery in which I remain by thought. I cling to life because my reverence for
life. For, when it begins to think, the will-to-live realizes it is free. It is
free to leave life. It is free to choose whether or not to live. This fact is
of particular significance for us in this modern age, when there are abundant
possibilities for abandoning life, painlessly and without agony.
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