The Sphere

Chapter 13

Mrs. Kirby, a 63-year-old woman with a smile on her face at any time of day, had managed to control the disease. After five years of struggle, with only a tiny dose of chemotherapy, but with a strict diet, based almost exclusively on whole grains and a positive attitude towards life, she had done it. Susan had rarely seen a patient in that advanced a state of cancer go into remission.

She remembered when she met Mrs. Kirby for the first time. Susan had been intrigued by her attitude towards life and death. There was nothing you could say that could scare the woman. It was like someone was laughing while their plane was crashing. Her fear of suffering had stopped her then from understanding Mrs. Kirby's behavior in the face of a possible death. But now she could see that people could do anything if they reprogram their brain properly, changing their inner representations of any given situation. She asked the woman how she dealt with stressful situations.

"Susan dear, there is no such thing as a stressful situation. There are just things that happen. It's our angle on the events that gives us stress and pain. Take my husband's death. I was in the middle of my battle with the disease when Kenneth, God rest his soul, died in that car crash. At first it was hard for me to understand the idea that the love of my life was no more, but then I understood that if I let his death get to me I would also be consumed by it. So I just looked the other way. It wasn't as easy at it sounds, but I managed to survive and that's the most important thing. The most important thing, I tell you!"