BERNIE By Bernie Siegel, MD


Understand Why


W


hen I was a young boy several of my friends became se- riously ill and one was hit by a car while bicycling to my house. When they all died I asked my father, “Why did


God make a world where terrible things happen? Why didn’t God make a world free of diseases, accidents and problems?”


He said, “To learn lessons.” I didn’t like that answer and asked


my rabbi, teacher and others. They said things like, “God knows, Why not?, Who knows?, That’s life, To bring you closer to God.” Some were honest enough to just say, “I don’t know.” This didn’t leave me feeling satisfi ed or enlightened. When I told my mother what they said she answered, “Nature contains the wisdom you seek. Perhaps a walk in the woods would help you to fi nd out why. Go and ask the old lady on the hill that some call a witch. She is wise in the ways of the world.”


As I walked up the hill I saw a holly tree had fallen onto the


path. As I tried to pull it aside the sharp leaves cut my hands. So I put on gloves and was able to move it and clear the path. A little further along the path I heard a noise in the bushes and saw a duck caught in the plastic from a six pack. I went over and freed the duck and watched him fl y off. None of this seemed enlightening.


As I reached the top of the hill I saw, in front of the old woman’s cabin, a deer sprawled on the ice of a frozen pond. She kept slip- ping and sliding and couldn’t stand up. I went out, calmed her and then helped her off the ice by holding her up and guiding her to the shore. I expected her to run away but instead of running away she and several other deer followed me to the house. I wasn’t sure why


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they were following me so I ran towards the house. When I reached the porch and felt safe I turned and the deer and I looked into each others eyes before I went into the house.


I told the woman why I had come and she said, “I have been


watching you walk up the hill and I think you have your answer.” “What answer?” “Many things happened on your walk to teach you the lessons


you needed to learn. One is that emotional and physical pain are necessary or we cannot protect ourselves and our bodies. Think of why you put on gloves and how you helped those animals. Pain helps us to know and defi ne ourselves and respond to our needs and the needs of our loved ones. You did what made sense. You helped those in front of you by doing what they needed when they needed it.


“The deer followed you to thank you, their eyes said it all, for being compassionate in their time of trouble. What you have learned is that we are here to continue God’s work. If God had made a perfect world it would be a magic trick, not creation, with no meaning or place for us to learn and create. Mankind is not yet ready for a perfect world. We do not know how to appreci- ate perfection. Creation is work. We are the ones who will have to create the world you are hoping for. A world where evil is to not respond to the person with the disease or pain whether it be emotional or physical. God has given us work to do. We will still grieve when we experience losses but we will also use our pain to help us know ourselves and respond to the needs of others. That is our work as our Creator intended it to be. God wants us to know that life is a series of beginnings not endings. Just as graduations are not terminations but commencements. Creation is an ongo- ing process and when we create a perfect world where love and compassion are shared by all suffering will cease.


For many, Dr. Bernard Siegel-or Bernie, as he prefers to be called-needs no introduction. He has touched many lives all over the Planet. In 1978, he reached a national and then international audience when he began talking about patient empowerment and the choice to live fully and die in peace. Read Bernie’s


regular blog posts on his website where you will also fi nd his books, articles, and CDs: http://www.berniesiegelmd.com. He is the Co-Academic Director of the Integrative Health and Healing M.A. Program at The Graduate Institute, Bethany, CT


Bernie currently holds a cancer support group the second and fourth Tuesday evenings of the month 1:30-3:30PM at Coachman’s Square at 21 Bradley Road, Woodbridge. If interested contact Lucille Ranciato: lranciato2@yahoo.com 203 288 2839; or Bernie: bugsyssiegel@sbcglobal.net. You can fi nd Bernie’s books ad CDs at Wisdom of the Ages in Simsbury, Ct. See ad on page 32.


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