Viktor Frankl

"A human being is not one thing among others; things determine each other, but man is ultimately self determining. What he becomes-within the limits of endowment and environment-he has made out of himself. In the concentration camps, for example, in this living laboratory and on this testing ground, we watched and witnessed some of our comrades behave like swine while others behaved like saints. Man has both potentialities within himself; which one is actualized depends on decisions, but not on conditions." -- Viktor Frankl

I have been reading "Man's Search For Meaning" by Viktor Frankl. It has been a fascinating read. Dr. Frankl spent almost 3 years in the concentration camps of Nazi Germany. He lost his father, mother, brother, and wife to the horrifying death camps (gas chambers). He tells his story with the intention of showing that even when a man (or woman) has literally everything taken from them, they can still find meaning, even in suffering. It is their choice. He survived the camps and went on to have great success in his life, living to the age of 92. It is quite the story.