the kindred project: day 2 (Viktor Frankl)

The Kindred Project: 12 Days of Light and Yes is about sharing our stories of light and hope. The moments where we said "yes" to choosing beauty even when it seemed impossible. The moments where we stood in our own light. The moments where we saw someone else choose hope. The moments where another became our teacher and where we taught ourselves. Read more about the project and share your own stories in this post. During these 12 days, I am sharing a few of the lights along my path that have pushed me and taught me and held me in the midst of it all. 

*****

gearhart, oregon . february, 2009

this evening, i walked over to the shelf that houses the books i gathered to me like friends while i was in college. as i flipped through a few, i came across the scribbles in the margin around one paragraph that had stopped me many years ago and caused me to sit in the quiet and think think think. as i read it again tonight, it has the same effect.  

We who lived in concentration camps can remember the men who walked through the huts comforting others, giving away their last piece of bread. They may have been few in number, but they offer sufficient proof that everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms—to choose one's attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one's own way.

Viktor Frankl, Man’s Search for Meaning 

Your homework: Head over to Ted.com to watch an incredible video clip of Viktor Frankl giving a speech in 1972 about why we should believe in one another. Brilliant. Funny. Yes.

Comments

[W*R*O*]

Hi Liz, I found you while scrolling through a friend's bookmarks on her computer (while my wee one still sleeps in our room next door)...and I'm so glad I came here...

I am joining this 12 days of Light and Yes...it's a good reminder as I heal through my own grief that I chose to live through it rather than give up and give into the eternal darkness. sometimes i forget that i have choices everyday to make to keep the darkness at bay...you know, in the middle of melt downs and whining and single parenting stuff...and this project feels like a way back. Thank you....I'll post my link to my post when it's written.

W*R*O*

[jill]

wow. what a quote. so powerful. i want to be that kind of man (woman). i am thinking about your project. it is beautiful. i am not sure i have a story to share yet.

[laurie]

thanks for sharing this and reminding us of this wisdom. i, too, want to be better than i am and should shoot a bit higher for that, it seems.

[jennifer h]

I found this amazing book in college too and it changed me forever. It taught me so much about hope and the power of perspective. Bless him. Thank you for sharing this here Liz - it reminds me that I'd benefit from reading these words again.