Are we resilient enough?

New entry (5 Jan 2011)~Buddhist perspective on suicide:

"Someone who commits suicide does so not out of self-hatred but because of thinking that it's a way of escaping a greater suffering."

However, "one is not escaping anything, because death is just a transition to another state of existence. So it would be better to try to avoid the suffering either by endeavoring to solve the problem in the here and nor, or, when that is not possible, by changing one's attitude toward this same problem."

Entry posted on 6 Jan 2010:
People have different perspective on the meaning of life and love. The following story made me wonder why some people would give up on life so easily (including those who took their own lives) without trying every possible means.

"One night John (not his real name) was awaken from his sleep

... gasping for breath and felt a sharp pain at his heart. He rushed to a 24-hour clinic and was informed that it might be a minor heart attack. The next morning, he went to another doctor to get a second opinion. The doctor confirmed it and wrote a referral letter to be admitted to the hospital for further check-up.

When it was confirmed by all that he did have a heart attack, John was in a state of a shock. He had no major illness or any health problem so far. He rushed to prepare his will and added his wife's name in his personal bank accounts. He thought he will die soon. His wife, on the other hand, advised him to seek treatment so that his condition will be controlled (like any sane human being would do). To his wife's surprise, he said that he doesn't want to spend that much money for an angioplasty procedure to clear the blockages. He rather die than to seek treatment. His wife was saddened by his perspective on life and asked him, "Isn't being alive and living a healthy life more important than anything?" His wife asked him what about the children? His answer was, "Oh, you can take care of them" That day, his wife made a promise to herself that she will live a healthy life and will not abandon her family in anyway."