Hope Rising
"Darkness cannot drive out darkness: only light can do that. Hate cannot drive out hate: only love can do that.”- Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. from The Testament of Hope: The Essential Writings & Speeches.
Every so often, history has a way of showing us what we are made of and the consequences of road we have taken, as well as those who have left us, or for whatever reason, we had to leave behind. Life can be like that. Through immense sorrow, disease or pain, we discover what is truly in our hearts and what we are really made of. This article illustrates one of those instances that actually resonated with me.
I have put off writing this article for well over a year. There are a number of reasons for this. I have been busy, I have been dealing with my own health issues, I have been struggling to work and survive. As I have written about in previous articles, I am a miracle of modern medicine. Like many others like me, we live our lives in very regimented ways. We take our medications. We watch what we eat and drink. We exercise and rest. We do the things to advance our life and promote our own self-worth. Simply put, we do these things to simply and promote good well-being.
Like many people who have survived cancer, I understand full well the miracle that has allowed people like me, to simply be preset in any given moment. Like all survivors I understand the fragility of life and work hard not to take any facet of my health for granted. At least, I can say that I do to the best of my ability, by eating right, taking my medications and working to keep my stress level down.
Purely on accident, as I was working during last summer, I had the opportunity to spend time with my mother, who is 81 years young and looks fabulous for her age. Like many older people, she had a routine which included watching some of her favorite shows. One of those shows caught me eye. It was "The View" on ABC. During my visits with my mother we watched "The View" and I became very well acquainted with it's hosts and famous guests. I was struck by the level of political diversity that existed on the show during that time, and the background of some of the hosts.
There was one host that almost always stood out for her views: Meghan Mc Cain. Meghan is the daughter of Senator John Mc Cain of Arizona. She almost always stood out for her views on various subjects and took quite a bit of grief for her views. She was young, pretty, articulate and seemed fiercely independent. Although this was always obvious to regular viewers of the show, I was not smitten by her looks, impressed by her demeanor or tantalized by her ability to "hang tough" and hold her ground. Those are all great qualities, but none of those things drew me to her. In fact, I disagreed with many of her political views and at times, her brash demeanor.
What I found most compelling was her about Meghan Mc Cain was her seemingly unflappable nature, when dealing with her father's ordeal with brain cancer. I have to admit, having walked away from caner and surviving all of these years, I don't think that I ever saw anyone as courageous and compassionate in my life. day in and day out she was on the air, doing her job and sticking to her guns. It was edibility clear that she was very close to her father and loved him deeply. Guests and her fellow hosts frequently asked and paid homage to her father. He even appeared as a guest on the show, as did his wife Cindy.
What struck me were other guests that also appeared on the show such as Vice President Joe Biden, Ana Navarro, historian John Meecham and even former FBI Director James Comey. Although each guest was brought on to discuss either the politics of the day, their political experience or whatever book they had written, each guest also seemed to have some very complimentary things to say about Senator Mc Cain, even if they didn't share his political philosophy. In this time in our history, that appeared to be quite a feat, as well as a wonderful gesture of good will and compassion.
I was very aware of Senator Mc Cain's story, as illustrated in his biography: "The Restless Wave: The Good Times, Great Fights & Other Appreciations". He was by no means a saint. He made lots of mistakes and paid for them. He also managed to rise above his shortcomings, in order to have a successful military career, even in the shadow of his father and his father before him.
Although Meghan did not choose a life of military service, but chose a career in television, it was clear that Meghan was the apple of her father's eye and he fully supported her choice of career. In seeing the two of them together, it was obvious that although Meghan's job took her some 3,000 miles away from her home in Arizona, they managed to keep in constant touch. I found this utterly amazing and was in awe of their closeness.
Over time, sadly, Senator Mc Cain did pass. He apparently planned every detail of his service, and of course, Meghan was asked to do the seemingly impossible: eulogize her father, in front of the entire world. A last request she later state as "standing in the place she never wanted to stand and saying the thins that she would hope she would never have to say.'
Her eulogy was a stunningly passionate,tender but poignant requiem on he life of her beloved father. I was moved beyond tears. I felt so bad that such a noble and just man, like Senator Mc Cain, who had endured and accomplished so much, should fall to such a menacing and dire fate. He indeed deserved far better.
Yet, there was his beloved daughter, the undisputed center of attention, standing there, facing an audience of the national and world leaders, and speaking from her heart, speaking her mind. She stood at the podium, telling the world, she was raised to be a fighter, and showing her father's detractors, just how misguided they were.
American history is filled with wonderful orators and great speeches. I admire such leaders who speak with purpose and evoke the spirit of dignity. In my lifetime, I have witnessed many great speeches: Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., John Kennedy, Rev. Jesse Jackson, Barack Obama. George Bush and Ronald Reagan, to name a few. However, I have never witnessed such a compelling site, where someone was able to fuse sorrow, dignity and passion to create closure.
It's horrific, moments that can bring the best out in us. It is these times, when we need to be consoled to find the strength to move on. Watching someone die is not an easy thing to bare witness to. Trying to find a lesson amidst such great sorrow, is an even more daunting task. But, to do all of those things, and bare your soul to the world, this is the thing that helps those who are not as strong, face the pain, and gain the strength to rise up.
Yes Meghan, Cancer does suck, but your father's spirit lives in you. The world is a better place for it, and in time so will you. #CancerSucks