Brad Swift: from near suicide to a life of purpose
In his book Life on Purpose: Six Passages to an Inspired Life, Brad Swift quotes Indian philosopher Patanjali:
“When you are inspired by some great purpose, some extraordinary project, all of your thoughts break their bonds: your mind transcends limitations.. faculties and talents become alive and you discover yourself to be a greater person than you ever dreamed yourself to be.”
In a section of the book, Swift recounts a major turning point in his life, when he was near suicide.
He writes, “To outward appearances, I’ve got it made: my own veterinary practice, investments in real estate, a fancy car, a wallet full of credit cards—all the trimmings of a supposedly successful life.
“But beneath the well-crafted exterior is a hollow core of emptiness and suffering. My life feels worthless, without any real meaning.”
He says he felt like Alice in Through the Looking-Glass, running with the Red Queen:
“But no matter how fast Alice runs she can’t seem to get anywhere.
“Finally, breathless from her efforts, Alice is allowed to rest long enough to comment, ‘Everything is just as it was!’
“The Queen replies, ‘Here, you see, it takes all the running you can do, to keep in the same place. If you want to get somewhere else, you must run at least twice as fast as that!’”
Swift notes, “I knew just how Alice must have felt. I was physically exhausted and emotionally out of breath, running as fast as I could to keep up with an out-of-control lifestyle of my own making.”
But he has reached a very different experience of life: “Now, as I sit watching the exquisite sunrise over the Blue Ridge Mountains, that day in Greensboro seems to be from a different person’s life—and in many ways it is.
“I am no longer that confused, scared, lonely young man. I no longer practice veterinary medicine; instead, I’m the founder of the spiritually based Life On Purpose Institute. And today I can truthfully say my life is filled with purpose and meaning.”
From his article My Personal Journey Along the Purposeful Path.
See two videos with Brad Swift on the page Meaning and Purpose.
May 24th, 2008 at 4:45 am
Thanks, Douglas, for sharing these excerpts on my life and doing it so well. (I love the accompanying picture of Alice as well.)
Besides coming from one of my articles, I also used it as part of my introduction to my book, Life On Purpose: Six Passages to an Inspired Life that was published last May by Elite Books, and that was an Award-Winning Finalist in the Self Help - Motivational Category of the National Best Books 2007 Awards presented by USA Book News. (The Secret won the category. Not bad company to keep, right?)
BTW, I’m writing this from my deck here in the Blue Ridge mountains as the early morning rays caress my face. Yes, that time in Greensboro feels so far away, and that’s ok with me.
BRAD