Courage in the face of adversity
In last week’s assembly we heard about Stoicism, the Greek and Roman philosophy that encourages us to focus on the things we can control, most of all the way we react to any given situation in which we find ourselves. On Monday we reflected on the remarkable life of Simon Boas, who – for the last eight years – was the Executive Director of Jersey Overseas Aid, an organisation based in the Channel Islands that distributes charitable money to deserving projects overseas. Prior to that, he had worked in developing countries for many years, with a particular focus on the Middle East. Sadly, Simon Boas died in July having been informed several months earlier that the illness with which he had been diagnosed could not be cured. He was just 47 years old.
In February of this year, he wrote a remarkable article about his diagnosis – here are some extracts from it:
‘My favourite bit of understatement ever comes not from a Brit or a Spartan but from the Japanese Emperor Hirohito. In August 1945, following Japan’s defeats in every recent battle and the obliteration of two cities with nuclear bombs, he broadcast that ‘the war situation has developed not necessarily to Japan’s advantage’.
Well, I’m sorry to have to announce that my own illness has also developed not necessarily to my advantage, but many things give me comfort at the minute, and there are three related thoughts which bring me joy and which I am writing this to share with you.
First of all, I take comfort from the thought that I’ve had a really good life. I have dined with lords and billionaires, and broken bread with the poorest people on earth. I have allocated and for several years personally delivered at least a hundred million pounds’ worth of overseas aid. I’ve enjoyed the tiny ways you can make other people a little happier. That’s actually the secret of being happy, oneself.
At 46, I have lived far longer than most of the humans in the 300,000-year history of our species. And if the book of my life is shorter than many modern people, it doesn’t make it any less of a good read.
Most of all, I have loved and been loved.
My second comforting thought is this: Nobody knows whether there’s a God, or an afterlife, but it seems unlikely to me that our existence is merely a brief and random flash of consciousness between two eternities of nothing. A benevolent creator strikes me as no more far-fetched than the latest efforts of physics to make sense of our world.
And finally, the thought I keep coming back to is how lucky it is to have lived at all. To exist is to have won the lottery. In fact, there are so many bits of unlikely good luck that have occurred just for us to be born, that it’s like hitting the jackpot every day of the year.
To the staggering improbability of you just being here to hear this is added to our good fortune in where and when we live. We live in the longest era of peace in human history, where our chances of dying from disease or violence are lower than ever before. We also live in an age of extraordinary abundance, the poorest of us richer than any medieval king in terms of access to food, energy, care, transport, knowledge, justice.
Life is inordinately precious, unlikely and beautiful. You are exquisite. When you say – as you do, 20 times a day – “I’m fine”, realise that you don’t just mean “I’m OK”. You are FINE. Refined. Unique. Finely crafted; fine dining; fine china! You really are fine in that sense too. We say it all the time, but unknowingly we speak the truth.
We should be dazzled by our good fortune – dancing on the tables every day. And I mean to keep dancing in whatever time I have left here, and (who knows?) perhaps afterwards too.’
Simon Boas was clearly a remarkable man who – when faced with the most challenging set of circumstances – was still able to control how he reacted. He even wrote a book, called A Beginner’s Guide to Dying, which was published earlier this month – which is a celebration of all the reasons to be grateful for the lives we have – and in doing so, he inspired and comforted millions of people.
Best wishes
Michael Bond
