“Some of the happiest moments in my life have been when I am sick in the hospital—honestly. And think about the implications of that because I have lived the kind of life that all of you spend your entire lives running from. I’ve been sick and dying my entire life. And yet, I am so proud of my life. What does that say? We’re waiting to be healthy; we’re waiting to be wealthy; we’re waiting to find our passion; we’re waiting to find our true love before we actually start living! Instead of looking at everything that we have—looking at all of the pain, looking at all of the sadness, looking at all of the beauty, and making something with that. That’s how innovation happens.” ~ Claire Wineland, Klick MUSE New York
Quotes about Being Sick
“I have lived a life of a lot of pain and I’m not pretending that I haven’t. I’ve had to deal with death; I’ve had to deal with painful surgeries; I’ve had to deal with being alone and scared in the hospital. But I have had a beautiful life—and one that I am so incredibly proud of. And that is not in spite of having Cystic Fibrosis… That’s because of it.” ~ Claire Wineland (19), Zappos All Hands Meeting
“We try to direct the mind toward recognizing reality. This is a chant that is recited daily in Buddhist monasteries: ‘Breathing in and out, I am aware of the fact that I am of the nature to die; I cannot escape dying. I am of the nature to grow old; I cannot escape old age. I am of the nature to get sick. Because I have a body, I cannot avoid sickness. Everything I cherish, treasure and cling to today, I will have to abandon one day. The only thing I can carry with me is the fruit of my own action. I cannot bring along with me anything else except the fruit of my actions in terms of thought, speech and bodily acts.'” ~ Thich Nhat Hanh, No Death, No Fear