Destiny Sedoo

I finished my first book of the year 2024 When Breathe becomes Air by Paul Kalanithi and I have to admit it was bittersweet experience. First of all, what really stood out for me were the quotes cited at the beginning and in between the chapters. There was just this sync between each quote and the entire story as a whole. One could tell that these quotes weren't just hand picked randomly but each had a deep connection with the author. Paul is a perfect definition of a dream chaser and goal getter. Even while battling cancer he still fought to achieve what his mind was set on even while harbouring doubts. Fear of failure is one of my biggest fears but this has encouraged me to keep pushing on no matter the circumstances. Paul confronted death- examined it, wrestled with it, accepted it- as a physician and patient and in a way helped so many other people to confront it head on too. Fear of death is also a big time fear and it became an even bigger fear when I lost my dad but then something about knowing that the outcome of your situation is not really positive but still facing it head on is the highest level of courage from Paul, his wife and family as whole, it's really inspiring. Whenever I think about my late loved ones especially my dad, I always think from the perspective of "losing my dad" but reading this book made me think about my mum and the perspective of "losing my partner" or better still "losing my soulmate". No one really knows the gravity of the "till death do us part " aspect of wedding vows until they go through it. I can only imagine the pain, heartache and frustrations that comes from losing someone you planned a future with and to think that Paul's wife, Lucy had to go through all this while raising an infant is really disheartening. She is a perfect definition of a strong woman. Plus she is now saddled with the responsibility of letting their daughter know who her father was and how impactful he was but thankfully Paul left behind a legacy that will speak volumes. I also think it takes a lot of guts to be vulnerable around people even your loved ones and Paul did this without any hassle despite the sudden change from physician to patient. He relied on his family and community and they all came through for him. This book has been a really great way to start my year.