Amazing reflection from Oliver Sacks on learning he has terminal cancer, and a very limited amount of time left.
Worth reading every last word, a couple of times. But I especially loved this part:
I feel a sudden clear focus and perspective. There is no time for anything inessential. I must focus on myself, my work and my friends. I shall no longer look at “NewsHour” every night. I shall no longer pay any attention to politics or arguments about global warming.
This is not indifference but detachment — I still care deeply about the Middle East, about global warming, about growing inequality, but these are no longer my business; they belong to the future. I rejoice when I meet gifted young people — even the one who biopsied and diagnosed my metastases. I feel the future is in good hands.
Clear focus and perspective — no time for anything inessential.
That’s the work of life right there. What’s essential to you? What should be?
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