Terry fox and the hierarchy of suffering

This week, I’m thinking about suffering. The terrible shooting out West. The ICE-related deaths in the US. The thousands of protesters in Iran. Unfortunately, the list could go on and on. There’s so much sadness, I want to curl up in a corner and give up on humanity. Yet, there are always routes to the light in dark times. The Olympic Games can provide a route to togetherness, as we remind ourselves we are a nation. They also, however, create divisions, intrinsic to the competitive nature of the event.
 
When I was struggling with my illness and treatment, small things made an enormous difference: supportive texts and calls, meals, snow shovellers, dog walkers, those who sat with me and did puzzles or made me laugh. My own ordeal felt so small, compared to the world, yet so very large in my own life.  My close friend listened to me speak about this and said, “Karen, there’s no hierarchy of suffering.”

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