DAILY SLICES OF LIFE- A Matter of Faith

        

“Without faith, nothing is possible.

     With faith, nothing is impossible.”

        

         These words, spoken by the very well respected and highly regarded African-American educator, civil-rights activist and trusted presidential advisor Mary McLeod Bethune, speak directly to the formidable power of faith in the life of anyone who truly wants to succeed. She insisted that the elusive factor that provides the strength and confidence to complete a desired undertaking is having the Faith that it will be done. Her own life is a testament to this. From very humble and traumatic beginnings, she rose to occupy the highest pinnacles of the literary world, not just because of her latent ability, but equally from her constant, unwavering faith in herself.

 Faith refers to that indescribable feeling that comes from deep within the individual’s psyche in times of need or challenge. It serves as the catalyst to provide a shield of confidence and the strength of conviction needed to ensure completion of the task. It influences thinking, suppresses uncertainty, provides stability and ensures the strength of character essential to continue, even when the end result might be in doubt. It is that special force which when fully developed,  will give full expression of confidence and unshakable trust that the outcome will always be favorable, even if all the indications are to the contrary.

When faith is in control, there is always a commanding and tangible aura of calm confidence that radiates from the person, and an accompanying firm belief that the action contemplated is founded on truth and therefore fully predictable. Emotionally, it is the overriding factor that leads to success whether it is for the child who takes his first ride on a bicycle, or fireman who enters a burning building, or pilot flying his airplane, or the missionary travelling to unknown places, or any of the countless human endeavors we all attempt as a part of our living. The constant denominator in all these actions is not only ability and desire, but the faith that it will be done. Norman Vincent Peale, the renowned American minister, inspirational speaker and author of “the power of positive thinking,” strongly endorsed  this approach when he advised:

“Believe in yourself. Have faith in your abilities.        

Without a humble but reasonable confidence in your own powers you cannot be successful or happy.”

Faith however, must never be confused with the sense of confidence that comes from being fully prepared, or with having the knowledge and experience to anticipate difficulties that may arise and then dealing with them. This ability has its basis of knowledge from learning and past experience, which together serves to provide the success. The confidence exhibited is such cases arise not from the faith within, but more from the understanding without. The architect who plans a structure, or a surgeon who treats his patient, or a meteorologist who predicts the weather, all do so, not on hope and faith, but rather on confidence and expertise. In such instances, the optimism that is reflected by these people is based on the confidence of experience and not on just blind hope or faith. Helen Keller, the incomparable American educator an social activist, who despite being deaf/mute from very early in her life, nevertheless achieved an amazing level of success, offered the following explanation:

“Optimism is the faith that leads to achievement.

Nothing can be done without hope and confidence.”

         This not withstanding, true faith is undoubtedly a profound human characteristic which, even without being aware of it, plays a significant role in all aspects of our daily lives. It is present, to greater or lesser extent, in every thing we do or think of doing, in every decision we make, and every conclusion we arrive at. When it is present, there is a feeling of calm confidence that all will be well, and that we will be protected from the always present human fears of failure, loss, disappointment and shame. Without this being present, there is no real guarantee that the choices we make will ever succeed in achieving their goals. In fact, the great majority will unhesitatingly confess that they trusted their faith to see them through, even when all else indicated otherwise. It is no surprise therefore, that in every aspect of life and living stories of true faith abound throughout the history of mankind and are witnessed regularly in one way or another by everyone on a daily basis.

In many ways it would be correct to assume that faith is a major component in everyone’s DNA. From the moment of birth and throughout our life as we go through, moving from one encounter to another, we are more often guided by hope and faith than by certainty. It begins with the trusting faith of every child who looks to the parent to satisfy it’s every need. And it continues, without any cessation, throughout the lifetime of the individual. He wakes up in the morning with the faith that the rest of the day is manageable. He functions for the rest of the day with the faith that everyone will do their part, and goes to bed, with faith that he will be alive the next day. Even the food he consumes can only be consumed because of an underlying faith that it will do no harm. When he crosses the street, he does so because of his faith that the oncoming traffic will not affect him. In fact, to an extent, all of life can be reduced in some way to being a matter of faith!

      Martin Luther King, Jr. one of America’s greatest civil rights leaders who was undoubtedly responsible for changing the country’s attitudes and behavior n the field of human rights, once observed:

“Faith is taking the first step forward even though you don’t see the whole staircase.”

He was describing that special force that comes from deep within the individual and points to the right direction, even without any evidence to support it. It is born of an overriding belief, and propagated by an overwhelming desire to fulfill its needs. It occurs in every aspect of human expression, at any age and at any time. The only requirements are a belief, a desire and the courage and commitment of faith to complete the task. This is the faith that propelled Christopher Columbus to sail across the Atlantic Ocean, assisted Sir Edmund Hilliary to conquer Mount Everest, Victor Frankl who overcame the terrors of the Nazi concentration camp and still produce one of the most influential books on human behavior, and Helen Keller who, despite losing her vision and hearing early in life, achieved great respect as an activist and an educator. These are but four of an endless list of people who have been able to overcome daunting obstacles to rise to the highest pinnacles of recognition because of their faith and trust in themselves and their vision.

         The Holy Bible in St. Paul’s letter to the Hebrews 11:1 defines this very precisely and clearly in these words:

“Faith is the confidence that what we hope for will happen, and provides assurance for those things we do not see.”

-Without any question, this is also a statement that we should all keep close to us in everything we do or think of doing!

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DAILY SLICE OF LIFE - Serving Humanity

“The best way to find yourself, is to lose yourself in the service of others.”

This very poignant observation was made by the great Indian leader Mahatma Gandhi, who successfully led a non-violent movement against the British colonial rule of India, securing its independence in 1947. By any measure, he was an exceptional humanitarian who spent his life in the pursuit of peace through service and non-violence. He lived his life by the Hindu principle of Satyagraha, dictated by a life of non-violence and dominated by truth and by service to others. He was a man of great principle who believed that nothing should ever be achieved at the expense of others, but only by service to them. His principles not only found expression in India, but influenced such great leaders as Martin Luther King and Nelson Mandela to adopt them in their fight to free their own people from domination.

         This urge to serve others is not a special gift restricted only to a few chosen people, but is widely echoed in the actions of an endless list of people from all nations and all walks of life. These are the people who took the time to listen to their inner voices, to explore their own needs, and find their true selves. They are the people who choose to give, not because they have too much, or are seeking to gain more, but rather because they have learnt the true meaning of living and sharing with others. They took the time to search for and find their humanity, and rejected the loud and self-centered noises created by a world intent on keeping all and ignoring all. These people, who may be our friends, neighbors, leaders or strangers, choose to exhibit an entirely different approach to life and living. They are people who are not preoccupied with seeking more and more, but rather who prefer to be guided by the instinct of sharing and giving. Their satisfaction is routed in the act of giving and not in the act of taking.

The overriding factors which seem to drive these people to persist in their efforts, often under extremely challenging conditions, appear to be quite constant and predictable and often fall under the following headings. Their actions are always unconditional without any expectation of a reward or pay back. Their orientation is never self-directed, but more outwardly. The focus is much less “me” and much more what can be done to help others in need. The mindset shifts from receiving to giving, and the reward is in the giving itself. People find

a sense of gratitude in the acts of giving  and this serves to encourage them to do more. This explains why each act, irrespective of content or difficulty, serves to reinforce the ego and imprints the need for repetition. It gives truth to the saying “no act of true service, however small or painful, is ever wasted.”

         The fundamental instinct for giving of oneself without regard as to whether a reward is expected in return or not has been studied by endless numbers of psychologists and behaviorists over the years. A range of theories have been put forward but there is as yet no common definitive consensus. This is not surprising since there has never been uniformity in the understanding of the psychology of giving. Like so much of human behavior, the mechanism is based on a mixture of three fundamental factors which operate together to produce the final result:

 INTRINSIC, based on the basic evolutional instinct of ensuring survival of the group and is often seen in the many voluntary preferential actions supporting communities, groups and family units.

EGOTISTIC, where the need to give of themselves is the strong motivational force that drives their life. Mother Teresa of Kolkota is a prime example of this, as she devoted her whole life to the care of the indigent and the helpless people on te streets of India.

ALTRUISTIC, where the individual feels compelled to share his knowledge and his resources because he considers it is the right thing to do. Dr. Albert Schweitzer, the great Swiss physician, philosopher and humanitarian who chose to establish a hospital to serve the sick and needy in a remote village in Africa is an excellent example.

 

But for all these people, choosing a life of service offers far greater benefits than just the satisfaction of the moment. It can in fact be the nucleus to induce profound changes in the individual, and the entire environment. It produces a transformation of the deeply embedded negative attitudes, improves overall insight and opens the horizons to a more permissive and inclusive awareness of people and their separate needs. As this evolves, perceptions broaden giving rise to an increase in maturity and a loss of the deeply embedded fears and insecurities. Multiple scientific studies have confirmed the very positive physical and emotional benefits experienced by both the giver as well as the recipients that follow a successful episode. Without question, this action of serving others in need creates greater impact on the psyche, and provides more satisfaction than any other human encounter. The individual as a result grows in confidence and in stature, and his actions are held in high regard by friend and foe alike. An easily identifiable aura of peace and satisfaction appears to emanate from them, even as they face great uncertainty and resistance.

All the major religions in the world, without exception, are founded on the humanitarian principles of service to their God and to man. The concepts of service and sacrifice are deeply embedded in the teachings and practices of all, and the values are deeply rooted in their texts, traditions and practices. The Christians refer to it as Charity, Judaism uses Tzedakah, and Islam insists on Zakat. Hindus speak of Satyagraha, serving others, as a great virtue, and Buddhists consider the service to others as Good Karma. But irrespective of the religion, the overriding consensus is that the action improves the being and pleases God. This was made abundantly clear in the writings of Abdul Baha, one of the founders of the Bahai Religion when he explained:

 “Service to Humanity is service to God. Let the love and light of the Kingdom radiate through you until all who look upon you will be illuminated by its reflections. Be as the stars, brilliant and sparkling in the loftiness of their heaven station.”

-In the end, especially for the Christians, all will be judged not by the mountains they conquered, or the fortunes they amassed, or the power they acquired, or the battles they won, or even the people they controlled, but by the sacred words of Jesus Christ contained in the Holy Bible: 

 - In Acts 20:35:

”In all things I have shown that by working hard in this way, we must help the weak. And remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he himself said: - “It is more blessed to give than to receive.”

  -And in Matthew 25:40:

“Whatever you do to the least of my brothers, you do to me.”

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And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up.     - Galatians 6:9

As each has received a gift, use it to serve one another, as good stewards of God’s varied grace.     - 1 Peter 4:10

In all things I have shown you that by working hard in this way we must help the weak and remember the words of the Lord Jesus, how he himself said, It is more blessed to give than to receive.

- Acts 20:35

                                        

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SLICES OF LIFE - The Expression of Grief

 “Grief is the price we pay for love.”

         This simple, heartfelt, and exquisite statement was made by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II on September 11^th 2001, in response to the catastrophic loss of life that resulted from the terrorist destruction of the New York World Twin Towers. It was, to my mind one of the finest expressions on grief ever recorded, and one that will be repeated by others over and over again, for a long time to come.

Grief is an intensely personal expression of lost love that affects our entire being; a unique, indescribable experience involving our spirit, our mind and our body. It is a deep, genuinely holistic response that is invariably as individual, and as unique as the person himself. By any measure, it is a unusual experience that firmly resists any simple comparison of one to another. It is a powerful, multifaceted and often uncontrollable response by the person to a physical and/or to a psychological loss or traumatic experience. It arises from the deepest levels of the emotional and spiritual psyche, and always appears with its own, exquisite imprint, each one as different, and as distinct as the individual himself. Any of the other manifestations for loss is more likely to be a false expression or manipulation by others to gain attention.

Contrary to the popular belief, Grief is neither a flaw nor a weakness that might have been inherited or acquired. It should           be seen as a deeply embedded personality trait related to the strength of the pre-existing emotional connections and the ability to relinquish them. The depth and intensity of the response does not always correlate to the degree of loss, but rather to the intensity of the pre-existing connections. The internal value of the loss is more akin to a deep emotional and spiritual event and not to the actual loss. This explains why the severity of response is often completely out of proportion the actual loss. It must never be viewed as a singe emotional expression, standing alone and separate from the other emotions. It should be seen as a ‘total experience’ or ‘a state of being’ that involves the physical, emotional, mental and spiritual make-up of the person, and quite capable of consuming the whole person

The initial response to any form of loss, pain or traumatic event by any individual is to show varying degrees of disappointment and/or  regret. This is not grief, but a natural and normal human response to any loss or painful event and is usually corrected by insight and understanding. True grief occurs when the individual finds it difficult to deal with the loss, or to accept it and move on, or resuming normal living after a reasonable time has passed. This should never be seen as a weakness or disease that requires treatment, but rather as an internal process, a journey of coping with, and adapting to, the loss of personal connections.

The current popular impression that the expressions of grief should be treated as a series of events, or stages of progression, or steps on a timeline that must be allowed to work through has led to the current approach of encouraging the aggrieved to “get past the loss.” This is fundamentally flawed, for although the loss takes place in a moment in time, the long term effects in fact, will never fully go away. Cicero, one of the greatest of the ancient Roman philosophers, placed this in the right context when he wrote:

“The life given to us by nature is short,

But the memory of a life well spent, is eternal.”

         One of America’s foremost counselors on death and dying, Rabbi Earl Grollman, has frequently reminded his audience that:

“The only cure for grief is to grieve.”

No truer statement on grief can ever be made by anyone. Grief is not something equivalent to making a bad choice that will be forgotten in time, but rather it is something when it happens, will never fully leave. It is certainly not just having to cope with bad news of losing someone, but it is more like entering a strange new world of feeling and missed communions that only begins with the loss. The pain of losing acts as a catalyst that unlocks all the deeply held memories and emotions that had been laid down throughout the many years of living; some of which were lying conveniently forgotten. At first it appears to be an intensely personal response with the accompanying emotional expressions visible to all, but this is but a small component of the process. The bulk of grief remains like hidden shadows stored deep within us, and showing themselves in such widely varying sentiments as silence, denial, mood swings, disorientation and even rage.

            There really is no single correct way to cope with grieving and no one ever follows the same path that another may take in dealing with it. Many will respond with heightened emotions, acting out in such a way that may do harm to themselves and to others. While others will tend to choose total silence and withdrawal, in the hope the action will somehow protect them from experiencing the pain of loss. And there are yet a few, blessed with a truly pragmatic attitude, who will accept the grief as part of living, and then move on with living their lives without any demonstrable effect. Such behaviors tend to aggravate  others because they have difficulty in understanding the approach adopted by the aggrieved. But whatever the path chosen, grief never truly goes away, it can only be accommodated, and only after there has been acceptance and understanding.

         In the current ‘advanced’ cultures dominated by impersonal and self-centered attitudes, the uninhibited expression of grief is largely discouraged and sometimes frowned upon. People are expected to be ‘strong’ in such situations and to present a stoic understanding rather than give into the basic human instinct of an empathetic response. Aesthetically this action may be desirable, but it serves to cheat the individual from sharing his inner feelings about the loss and in effect forcing him to isolate himself and lose human connectivity. It should come as no surprise therefore that society is becoming increasingly grief and mortality phobic. This does not exist in the Eastern and Far Eastern cultures, where the full expression of grief is encouraged.

John Mark Green, an obscure but very talented American poet, clearly writing from deep personal experience, very exquisitely and sensitively explained the road traveled by everyone in grief:

“Each person’s grief has its own finger prints.

Every journey of sorrow has its unique plan.

Hearts will heal on their own timetable.

Never presume to know how others should

 deal with their pain.”

-It will do us all a great deal of good to take these words to heart, for while we are all happily conducting our daily business of living, we are always but a single moment from experiencing the grief from a loss, and being plunged into the painful world of grieving.

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DAILY SLICE OF LIFE - Letting go of the Past

   “Letting go of the past is not about having the courage to release the past. It is about having the wisdom to embrace the present.”

This powerful comment was made by Dr. Steve Maraboli, the very successful American author, behavior scientist, educator and inspirational speaker. He was speaking on the importance of releasing bad experiences from the past, and choosing instead, to live contented in the present. He insisted that unless we are able to free ourselves from the shackles of past bad decisions and actions, and leave behind all the hurts and the mistakes we collected along the way, we will never able to find the freedom to start over again in the present. He cautioned that unless we were able to do so on every occasion, we will be doomed, like so many people presently are, to a life of continuing emotional pain, disappointment and unhappiness.

         We all have, in one way or another, a tendency to spend a great deal of time reliving and remembering past events that had caused us any pain and unhappiness. Instead of trying to find answers or learn lessons from them, we are choosing to rehash and regret and further imprint them in our memory banks. This only increases the hold and tightens the shackles on us, making us more and more prisoners of our past. We become so blinded with the negatives that we fail to see all the good things that are happening around us. Because of this, any hope of ever finding answers or solutions is effectively drummed out of our consciousness by the noises of the past failures, and replaced by feelings of humiliation, fear and imagined threats. Even worse, we end up being so buried by the worry of what next will happen that we actually become prisoners of ourselves.

         Tragically, the great majority of people, including myself, will admit that even when we know that our actions are not helping us, we still find it difficult to stop them and do the right thing. And even when, on the and few occasions an effort was made to correct the attitude, we were so burdened by all the guilt and regrets from our past activities that we were just unable to take even a single step in the right direction. Instead we end up spending all our time feeling dejected and unhappy, and ready and willing to blame everybody and everything. The great shame of this is that instead of enjoying all the good things in our life, we end up consumed by our failures, our hurts and our disappointments.

          We have lost sight of the fundamental rule that life can only be lived in the present and any attempt to go back to any of the painful memories of the past is doomed to failure. The Arabs have long recognized this fact, and their culture has always held firm on insisting on never dwelling on any mistakes or bad judgments committed. This is reflected in one of their great proverbs which advises:

“Write the bad things that are done to you in sand,

But write the good things that happen to you in marble”

This advice clearly makes great sense in that when bad things or bad experiences are written in sand, they will be easily blown away and forgotten, as should happen. But however, as most of us choose to do, by engraving them in the marble of our life, we effectively immortalize them in our minds and in so doing, create ghosts that will haunt us incessantly.

         The effects on the human psyche and physiology by unresolved conflicts resulting from the harboring of the unforgiving thoughts and actions have been studied in countless scientific settings and the outcomes have been unanimously consistent. Emotionally, the ongoing anger and resentment quickly precipitates chronic anxiety symptoms leading to an unrelenting depressive state with significant personality and behavioral manifestations. They can exert severe psychosomatic pressures on the body causing major health changes. They precipitate cardiovascular dysfunction including increased heart rates and high blood pressure, and in severe cases may cause heart attacks. In some instances they have been shown to directly affect recovery from other health issues so much so that they are classified as a distinct “disease” entity in many medical classifications.

         Without any question, releasing the grip of the unforgiving past, if successfully achieved, will undoubtedly open a true floodgate of transformative behavior, and lead to substantial improvement of life in the present. Removing the dark clouds of suspicion and fear will quickly allow the bright sunshine of hope and joy in the present to rush in and take hold. But nothing new or meaningful can be started or carried on until the unchangeable past is effectively released and the future is willingly embraced. This is the task that must be undertaken by anyone hoping for change, and nothing good will ever happen without it. It will only begin to happen after we start to forgive ourselves, bury our bad, distorted memories, and get rid of all the negative garbage that has accumulated in our minds. By successfully introducing understanding and forgiving thoughts, there will be greater insight and perception, and better understanding of the actions of others.

I can attest from my own experiences this will never happen on its own but requires a conscious effort on our part to release the past, to recognize, understand and forgive the mistakes made, and try to make amends if we can or even correct if possible, as we plan ahead. Any hope of moving forward will only take effect when there is understanding and commitment in place, and a determination to secure the changes necessary. Since the past cannot be changed, we can only hope to deal with it by accepting it, learning from it and by forgiving ourselves and the others. This is the only way we have of ensuring a life of happiness, fulfillment and satisfaction and free our spirit to achieve more. This is precisely what Jack Canfield, the highly successful American author, entrepreneur and motivational speaker was alluding to when he made the following observation:

“To let go of the past is to release the images and emotions, the grudges and fears, the clinging and disappointments that bind our spirits.”

-Indeed, no man can ever claim his spirit is free, while he continues to allow: “the shadows of his past to darken the doorstep of his future.”

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DAILY SLICE OF LIFE - Taking Responsibility

“Most people do not really want freedom, because freedom involves responsibility; and people are afraid of responsibility.”

This profound and far reaching observation was originally made by the great Austrian born neurologist Sigmund Freud, the founder and acknowledged father of the School of Psychoanalysis. In his own right, Freud spent a great deal of his life in the philosophical study of human behavior and in trying to understand the reasons for the behavior. He insisted that because of the fears instilled by their unconscious minds, people are afraid to accept responsibility for their behavior, and choose instead, to allow others to do so for them, or look for reasons or excuses to avoid having to do so.

 I have always been a strong proponent of this view, and I am convinced that that this subconscious fear of accepting responsibility plays, and has always played, a substantial role in the causation and the continuation of so many behavioral problems in the world. Most of the time, when anyone of us is confronted with a new situation in our life, or an obstacle standing in our way, we tend to quickly take credit when we overcome them successfully, but will do everything we can to avoid having to cope with the other, less favorable, situations that may arise. We will happily seek appreciations and take credit for the good things, but we are quick to find excuses or blame others for any problems or challenges standing in our way. This unwillingness to take responsibility for the negative parts of our life is the single most destructive action we can ever undertake. Unquestionably, it is a major reason for preventing us from progressing, growing and reaching our maximum levels of success and satisfaction.

Only by taking full responsibility for his life that one is able to derive the full benefits of living, to make full use of the opportunities available, and to avoid the feelings of inadequacy and disappointment that accompany negative situations. For by taking responsibility for one’s actions, there will be no need to find excuses or trying to blame others for the failed experiences. Responsible behavior will serve only to enhance one’s ability to do more and strive harder. It will hand the person the power to be the best he is capable of being, to avoid the stagnation so often precipitated by the underlying fear and perceived inadequacy. Even better, such actions serve to reinforce his drive to secure change in order to achieve more and live better. Change will never take effect if a man loses the courage to accept responsibility. Dr. Robert Anthony, the very well respected American psychotherapist and motivational speaker, endorsed this observation most effectively when he advised:

“When you blame others, you give up the power to change.”

No one can ever hope to truly understand himself or his actions without being in full control of his inner being. This requires a full understanding of the true inner self. Only by knowing essentially who you are, and not who you would want to be like, and above all, by being truly honest to yourself, will you not want or need to find reasons to make excuses. By avoiding any need to cover up the fear of failure by blaming others or by finding excuses to justify your actions, and instead accepting the responsibility to search out the reasons for the failure when it takes place, you not only grow in confidence, but you effectively take control of yourself and of your destiny. This gift of responsibility, once acquired, will give you the freedom to fully take control of yourself. It will provide you with the true awareness of the powers you possess, and serve to shape your life and your relationship with others. Zig Ziglar, an influential American motivational speaker, very beautifully described this effect in these words:

“Your life is like an echo. What you choose to send out will determine what you get back.”

But taking responsibility is neither an innate ability of the human spirit, nor is an automatic characteristic. Although people may inherit some traits and attitudes that may encourage the self-confidence essential for the expression of responsibility, its full manifestation can only take place in a milieu of experience, example and learning from others, where correct actions are rewarded and others, punished. The natural animal instinct, driven by the need for self-gratification, actually discourages the acceptance of responsibility and encourages the opposite, of dominance and control. Responsibility is therefore never passed on from generation to generation by right, but only by individual determinism. Jawaharlal Nehru, the great Indian independence activist and 1^st prime minister of the Republic of India, explained this very appropriately when he observed:

“Life is like a game of cards. The hand dealt to you is determinism, but the way you play it is free will.”

         There is no stereotype that can readily predict or identify the criteria necessary to act responsibly. By their very nature, people respond differently to the same situation, and exercise different choices depending less on the circumstances, and more on emotional thinking. Responsibility is not just the ability to come up with creative and appropriate responses to the situation, but also to be able to do so while projecting trust and consistency to others. Choosing to act responsibly in challenging situations demands not only knowledge and wisdom, but a degree of maturity to consider and deal with the resulting rewards or consequences. Without this, it would be impossible to accept blame for failures and to learn from them. Even when all appears lost, it will require taking the responsibility to find the correct way out.

 George O’Neil, the American author and playwright who died in 1940, correctly summarized the true meaning of taking responsibility when he wrote:

“When we have begun to take charge of our lives, to own ourselves, there is no longer any need to ask permission of someone.”

This attitude was by no means lost by Sigmund Freud, whose very last act on earth was to take the responsibility to end his own life, when all else failed to treat the advancing cancer that had devoured his body.

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