Pamela Quillin, P.E.
  • Home - Career Overview
  • Key Accomplishments
    • Micro Motion, Inc.
    • Marathon Petroleum Co.
    • PPG Industries, Inc.
  • Recommendations
    • Other Recommendations
  • Papers
  • My Company
  • Blog

Capacity for Life

9/3/2011

1 Comment

 
I met a lady last weekend named Nancy through a church friend.  Nancy is from Wisconsin but has lived her adult life in Denver.  She never married and has no relatives here so you know she is one courageous and adventurous soul.

Nancy struck me as kind, generous, thoughtful, and interested in life.  She is a nurse so her intellect needs no verification.  Her interest in life was the most outstanding quality about her.  You see, Nancy's breast cancer returned a year ago by metastasizing in her bones as well as other places.  She can't beat it this time but hopefully they can keep it in remission through treatment, which often makes her ill.

She works still and enjoys her work for many reasons.  One is that Nancy enjoys being productive.  Another reason is she needs the social aspect of work.  She enjoys the job and her coworkers.

She is keeping her home up to the best of her abilities.  She recently hired someone to help clean.  Her yard is in very good shape through her own efforts, primarily.  I'd say Nancy is remarkable because the treatment has ravaged her body and she was skinny to begin with.

I admire and respect Nancy!  She could stay home and mope about her bad fortune but she isn't.  She could make everyone she comes in contact with her emotional hostage with her bad fortune but she isn't.  She could reject people and especially new people but she isn't.  She could set guidelines on conversation but she isn't.  She participates in life as fully as possible and lives each moment with interest in life and those around her.

A pastor I studied under for many years, Col. R.B. Thieme, Jr., said often that you can tell a lot about a person's integrity by the way they keep their home and other possessions.  If they take care of what they have, they have integrity.  Nancy has integrity.

He also said a lot of things about having capacity for life.  Since Nancy is living life as normally as possible through her battle with cancer, she is demonstrating a capacity for life.

She knows the end is near but that does not stop her.  She is not mired in self-pity, depression, narcissism, etc.  She is facing death and lives her life with as much zest as her weakened and frail body can.

Many of us could learn lessons from such brave and courageous souls about integrity and capacity for life.  It would help us face life and our own death, however near or far, better.  It would make each day sweeter to the very end.
1 Comment
Crista Huff link
9/3/2011 10:22:47 am

Pamela,
I am a gardener by trade (amongst other endeavors). I would be happy to help Nancy with yardwork for free. You or she may contact me at any time.
Crista Huff (FB)

Reply

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.


Leave a Reply.

    Author

    I have spent years in the bowels of manufacturing plants helping to bring numerous products to market that touch virtually every aspect of life.

    Archives

    March 2014
    December 2012
    November 2012
    October 2012
    August 2012
    July 2012
    June 2012
    May 2012
    April 2012
    March 2012
    November 2011
    September 2011
    July 2011
    May 2011
    April 2011
    March 2011
    February 2011
    October 2010
    September 2010
    August 2010
    April 2010
    December 2009

    Categories

    All
    Alternative Energy
    Humor
    Political
    Subsidies

    RSS Feed

Powered by Create your own unique website with customizable templates.