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Finding Meaning |
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 Introduction
We each get our "brief time on stage," and then we are gone. Sometimes
everything can seem so pointless. Why bother to live? Nothing is so
deeply human as the search for meaning. Most of us seek life's meaning
beyond the boundaries of our physical life. Many discover that finding
meaning that transcends physical limits becomes important to them
as they try to live fully despite serious illness. Such searching
takes many forms. Some pursue meaning through their religious faith,
some in family and friends, others in good works or the goodness of
humanity, and others in nature. However you find meaning, your search
for it is ordinarily one of the most important projects for the end
of life.
When you have an illness that will eventually cause your death, a
door closes on what had seemed a future of endless possibilities.
Everything may seem beyond your reach to you. Things once taken for
granted are now uncertain, and new and unfamiliar issues arise. While
others go about their activities and the business of the world continues,
the road you travel may suddenly seem unfamiliar, its signposts poorly
marked. At this crossroads, you are likely to question issues you
once felt were settled. |
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Adapted from The
Handbook for Mortals: Guidance for People Facing Serious Illness,
by Joanne Lynn and Joan Harrold, copyright by Joanne Lynn, used by
permission of Oxford University Press.
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