Toufic Kachaamy, Chief of Medicine and Director of Gastroenterology at City of Hope, shared a post on LinkedIn:
“Thankful for Hardship??!! And HOPE
This Thanksgiving, I’m grateful for something many people avoid speaking about: hardship.
Hardship has shaped me more than any moment of comfort ever has.
As an immigrant who grew up in war, I learned early that life can break you open before it builds you back up.
In my daily work, I watch people I love fight battles, some against circumstance, others against illnesses like cancer. These moments leave marks… but they also leave lessons.
Here are some of the lessons I learned about hardship.
– it is unavoidable, no one can escape it, however much resources you have accumulated. So learn to embrace it and fight.
– it teaches you who you can truly rely on. It allows you to decide who is worth it to be in your inner circle.
– It exposes your weaknesses and gives you the ability to train on courage and overcome your weakness.
-It forces you to confront yourself, and gives you the gift of growth. Trauma is painful, unavoidable and allows you post-traumatic growth and resilience.
– It strips away illusions and clarifies what really matters.
– It stretches your resilience and builds a hope that is stronger because it has been tested.
Hope born from hardship is different.
It isn’t naïve. It isn’t fragile. It’s earned.
So this Thanksgiving, I’m grateful for the challenges that shaped me, for my patients who taught me that hope can transform hardship into a growth opportunity, for the people who stood by me in times of hardship for the people who allowed me in and gave me the privilege to help during their hardship, and most of all I am grateful for the hope that continues to rise even when life gets heavy.
If you or a loved one is going through hardship this Thanksgiving, first acknowledge their hardship and then try to help them find a message of hope.”
More posts featuring Toufic Kachaamy on OncoDaily.