When Breath Becomes Air

As I cross 66 today, I recommend you to read this book: When Breath Becomes Air by Paul Kananithi. It is one of the powerful books, I read, written by a brave neurosurgeon suffering from lung cancer, who tries to find meaning between life and death.

I quote few sentences from the book:

“If the unexamined life was not worth living, was the unlived life worth examining?”

“ There is a moment, a cusp, when the sum of gathered experience is worn down by the details of living. We are never so wise as when we live in this moment.”

“You can’t ever reach perfection, but you can believe in an asymptote towards which you are ceaselessly striving.”

“When there is no place for scalpel, words are the surgeon’s only tool.” (Scalpel is a surgeon’s knife. A strong message to medical fraternity)

And, very touching lines from Epilogue written by Lucy Kananithi, wife of Paul Kananithi:

"I returned to Paul’s bedside. He looked at me, his dark eyes alert above the nose bridge of BiPAP mask, and said clearly, his voice soft and unwavering, “I’m ready.” (when breath becomes air)

Ready, he meant, to remove the breathing support, to start morphine, to die.

The family gathered together. During the precious minutes after Paul’s decision, we all expressed our love and respect. Tears glistened in Paul’s eyes. He expressed gratitude to his parents. He asked us to ensure that his manuscript be published in some form. He told me a last time that he loved me. The attending physician stepped in with strengthening words: “Paul, after you die, your family will fall apart, but they will pull it back together because of example of bravery you set.”"