2009-12-19

Needs and Meaning

I did not write for a while due to several reasons. First I invested a lot of private time into building technical knowledge slightly different from my daily work. That held me back from writing more posts already earlier, but sometimes such is necessary if you want to grow - see also "Knowledge is freedom".

The second reason is the birth of our second son. Unfortunately after the first two weeks it turned out, that he has a tachycardia and needed to stay under intensive care. A few days ago we got him back home with medication and a heart monitor.

What I learned from this recently:
  • Luck, happiness and healthiness is fragile.
    When he was born I was so happy to have two sane children. Now I know how fast that can change. - I should already know this very well - everything is fleeting...

  • Replace worrying with real risk management.
    When situation is bad we are full of sorrows and when everything is fine we actually need to worry about our properties and health fading away. So we could spend our life worrying all the time or simply stop it because anyway it does not make anything better. This is not to be put together with not being aware! - We should be aware of potential risks and problems! We should do our best to act healthy and ethical! But plain worries focus just on all the possible bad results without real risk management and taking any action - so our day-to-day repeating worrying really does not make any sense.

  • Maslow is quite right with the hierarchy of needs.
  • Viktor Frankl was quite right also.
    He has written about man's search for meaning and developed the logotherapy. He basically states that we can discover meaning in life in three different ways: (1) by creating a work or doing a deed; (2) by experiencing a value – nature, a work of art, another person, i.e., love; (3) by the attitude we take toward unavoidable suffering.

  • Be thankful for every help you get.
    Especially doctors often have a negative image, but they really can save your life (or in our case the life of our son).
Related posts: Biggest worries, Knowledge is freedom, The most important things to know, All done status, There is suffering.

1 comment:

Ralph said...

Glad to hear that you have your son. I pray that he recovers and regains his health. Nice post!