--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Upon learning that her cancer had spread…" description: "\"“Upon learning that her cancer had spread to her spine, Paula prepared her thirteen year-old son for her death by writing him a letter of farewell that..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d53/irvin-yalom-2-73626_death_upon-learning-that-her-cancer-had-spread_499955.jpg" --- # Upon learning that her cancer had spread to her spine… ![“Upon learning that her cancer had spread to her spine, Paula prepared her thirteen year-old son for her death by writing him a letter of farewell that moved me to years. In her final paragraph she reminded him that the lungs in the human fetus do not breathe, nor do it's eyes see. Thus, the embryo…” quote by Irvin Yalom, سپیده حبیب](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d53/irvin-yalom-2-73626_death_upon-learning-that-her-cancer-had-spread_499955.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d53/irvin-yalom-2-73626_death_upon-learning-that-her-cancer-had-spread_499955.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/d53/irvin-yalom-2-73626_death_upon-learning-that-her-cancer-had-spread_499955.jpg) > ““Upon learning that her cancer had spread to her spine, Paula prepared her thirteen year-old son for her death by writing him a letter of farewell that moved me to years. In her final paragraph she reminded him that the lungs in the human fetus do not breathe, nor do it's eyes see. Thus, the embryo is being prepared for an existence it cannot yet imagine”” [Irvin Yalom, سپیده حبیب](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/irvin-yalom/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Facing terminal illness, a mother writes a heartfelt farewell, highlighting the mystery of life before consciousness. **In simple terms:** A mother comforts her son while confronting death, noting unborn life’s unknown future. Key Takeaway Cherish present moments and accept life’s unknowns. Themes mortality family comfort Mood somber reflective Type emotional philosophical When to use this quote - grieving families - palliative care - end‑of‑life counseling Key Concepts existentialism acceptance Questions to Reflect On - How do we find meaning when confronting inevitable loss? - What role does metaphor play in coping with death? A Different Perspective The letter may not ease all grief; some may find the metaphor unsettling. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Death](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) [Death and dying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death-and-dying/) [Embryo Prepared](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/embryo-prepared-4259739/) [Eyes Embryo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/eyes-embryo-4259740/) [Fetus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fetus/) [Fetus Breathe](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/fetus-breathe-4259738/) [Human Fetus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/human-fetus-260842/) [Life](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/life/) [Psychology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/psychology/) ## Related quotes > [Does the unborn human fetus have at any point the right to live?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dennis-prager/does-the-unborn-human-fetus-have-at-any-point-the-right-to-live/) [Dennis Prager](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dennis-prager/) > [What is fetus farming? Simply put, it is the creation and development of a human fetus for the purposes of later killing it for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nathan-deal/what-is-fetus-farming-simply-put-it-is-the-creation-and-development/) [Nathan Deal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nathan-deal/) > [What it gives any human being a right to - to pick and choose which embryo - which fetus is more valuable than another.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nadya-suleman/what-it-gives-any-human-being-a-right-to-to-pick-and-choose-which/) [Nadya Suleman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nadya-suleman/) > [There's a difference between early and late abortions. If you have a late abortion, where the fetus might feel pain, then I think you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-singer/there-s-a-difference-between-early-and-late-abortions-if-you-have-a/) [Peter Singer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-singer/) > [I think we have deluded ourselves into believing that people don't know that abortion is killing. So any pretense that abortion is not killing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/faye-wattleton/i-think-we-have-deluded-ourselves-into-believing-that-people-don-t/) [Faye Wattleton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/faye-wattleton/) > [The use of fetuses as organ and tissue donors is a ticking time bomb of bioethics.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arthur-caplan/the-use-of-fetuses-as-organ-and-tissue-donors-is-a-ticking-time-bomb/) [Arthur Caplan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arthur-caplan/) > [“No, I'm the human here. I'm the life at stake. I'm the one with fingernails, who feels pain. Me.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alicen-grey/no-i-m-the-human-here-i-m-the-life-at-stake-i-m-the-one-with/) [Alicen Grey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alicen-grey/) > [A woman who deliberately destroys a fetus is answerable for murder. 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Kristof](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-d-kristof/) > [“It's kinda cool to think about you as a real person, instead of some fetus ghost.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hillary-frank/it-s-kinda-cool-to-think-about-you-as-a-real-person-instead-of-some/) [Hillary Frank](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hillary-frank/) > [Before a baby is born, you have a baby shower, not a fetus shower.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/june-hunt/before-a-baby-is-born-you-have-a-baby-shower-not-a-fetus-shower/) [June Hunt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/june-hunt/) > [Scientifically, there's no debate over whether the fetus is alive and human.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ron-paul/scientifically-there-s-no-debate-over-whether-the-fetus-is-alive-and/) [Ron Paul](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ron-paul/) > [ \[Margot Hentoff\] thinks - first of all, she - this I hear from a lot of people beside her. She thinks that men have… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nat-hentoff/margot-hentoff-thinks-first-of-all-she-this-i-hear-from-a-lot-of/) [Nat Hentoff](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nat-hentoff/) > [A pregnant woman and her spouse dream of three babies--the perfect four-month-old who rewards them with smiles and musical cooing,the impaired baby, who changes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/t-berry-brazelton/a-pregnant-woman-and-her-spouse-dream-of-three-babies-the-perfect/) [T. Berry Brazelton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/t-berry-brazelton/) ## More by Irvin Yalom, سپیده حبیب > [“More than death, one fears the utter isolation that accompanies it. We try to go through life two by two, but each one of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/irvin-yalom/more-than-death-one-fears-the-utter-isolation-that-accompanies-it-we/) [Irvin Yalom, سپیده حبیب](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/irvin-yalom/) > [“I hate it that she has so insinuated herself into the interstices of my mind that I can never root her out. And most…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/irvin-yalom/i-hate-it-that-she-has-so-insinuated-herself-into-the-interstices-of/) [Irvin Yalom, سپیده حبیب](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/irvin-yalom/) > [“I explain to my patients that abused children often find it hard to disentangle themselves from their dysfunctional families, whereas children grow away from…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/irvin-yalom/i-explain-to-my-patients-that-abused-children-often-find-it-hard-to/) [Irvin Yalom, سپیده حبیب](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/irvin-yalom/) [Explore all 4 Irvin Yalom, سپیده حبیب quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/irvin-yalom/) ## More Death quotes > [“He wondered how it was fair that your dying should depend so much on when you were born.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitch-albom/he-wondered-how-it-was-fair-that-your-dying-should-depend-so-much-on/) [Mitch Albom](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitch-albom/) > [What sets worlds in motion is the interplay of differences, their attractions and repulsions. 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Then his eyes turned to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-anthony-torino/what-did-you-see-she-asked-gently-his-brow-furrowed-as-if-he-could/) [J. Anthony Torino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-anthony-torino/) > [Those whose life is long still strive for gain, and for all mortals all things take second place to money.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sophocles/those-whose-life-is-long-still-strive-for-gain-and-for-all-mortals/) [Sophocles](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sophocles/) > [“I practice Dying--every night-- But have not learned to, still-- Though Talented--by Mortal bones-- For such a common Skill.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-w-powers/i-practice-dying-every-night-but-have-not-learned-to-still-though/) [Alan W. Powers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-w-powers/) > [“You must understand the pain and grief of losing someone is nothing more than a function of survival.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steven-cooper/you-must-understand-the-pain-and-grief-of-losing-someone-is-nothing/) [Steven Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steven-cooper/) > [I am not a depressive person at all, but I reflect a lot on my life, and life in general, from the perspective of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alejandro-gonzalez-inarritu/i-am-not-a-depressive-person-at-all-but-i-reflect-a-lot-on-my-life/) [Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alejandro-gonzalez-inarritu/) > [“Death is a reality that calls the rest of life and all of our assorted strivings into sharp relief.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/craig-d-lounsbrough/death-is-a-reality-that-calls-the-rest-of-life-and-all-of-our/) [Craig D. Lounsbrough](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/craig-d-lounsbrough/) > [I love life. I love life to death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emmanuelle-riva/i-love-life-i-love-life-to-death/) [Emmanuelle Riva](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emmanuelle-riva/) > [I think when you’re dying you start looking for important things in the corners. You can’t let anything that seems even semi-important pass, because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-crutcher/i-think-when-you-re-dying-you-start-looking-for-important-things-in/) [Chris Crutcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-crutcher/) [Browse all 39,127 Death quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/death/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“Upon learning that her cancer had spread to her spine, Paula prepared her thirteen year-old son for her death by writing him a letter of farewell that moved me to years. 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