This text was published in a book: “Carried by the Spirit: Our Hearts Sing. Discerning Meaning during the COVID-19 Pandemic“ (editors dr Maria Marshall and dr Edward Marshall).
The book contains an article by Viktor E Frankl published for the first time in English and the contribution of 33 authors.
Proceeds of this book are donated to the UN charity for aiding refugees and displaced persons.
The book can be ordered from Amazon.
This book is now listed on the website of the Viktor Frankl Institute, Vienna, Austria.
Text presented here is from my personal blog, and is was edited for the book by dr Maria Marshall and dr Edward Marshall (Ottawa Institute for Logotherapy, Kanada).
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Here in Serbia during April and May 2020 due to pandemic we had a total weekend lock down for 4 weekends. Almost 80 hours without possibility to go out of home. Besides the pandemic political situation is also very unstable.
I am passionate about walking. I walk as soon as I got up for 15 minutes early in the morning. And later during the day we walk with Kata and Dragutin, our dogs of tornjak breed, sometimes just for 15 minutes and sometimes for more than hour.
Being locked in unsafe and uncertain times, was a perfect time for me to understand fully the meaning of Dr Frankl’s wisdom. Also, I had enough time for my music.
I adore music, most of all my violin. Starting to play it at the age of 45 I consider on of the greatest achievement in my life.
So, my violin is always with me. And it is very much connected to logotherapy, this is how I figured out during the isolation.
I thought: Don’t forget what you have learnt in logotherapy and violin is supporting it. This is how:
G string – Gratitude and Meaningful Goals
D string – Defiant Power of Human Spirit
A string – Attitudinal Value and Change
E string – Exitance (“Here and Now”)
I thought why not taking all the notes/letters!
And look, there is a message with meaning in the way notes are named!
C – Conscience – The intuitive capacity of the human person to discover the meaning of a Situation
D – Defiant power of the human spirit – Ability of the human person to discovery meaning in the face of tragedy
E – Existential – “here and now” – Frankl uses the term in reference to (1) existence itself, that is, the way of being that is uniquely human; (2) the meaning of existence; (3) the striving to find a concrete meaning in personal existence
F – Freedom of the Will – Ability of the human person to choose “to take a stand on whatever conditions might confront them” Freedom of the will is opposed to determinism, but does not imply freedom from conditions in life. Freedom of the will is one of three axioms upon which logotherapy and existential analysis is based. See also meaning in life and the will to meaning
G – Gratitude and Meaningful Goals – Simple be grateful and define meaningful goals
A – Attitudinal value – One of the categorical values. The value by which one finds meaning through the stand one takes toward a situation, especially an unchangeable fate; that is, the choice of an attitude that allows the human person to rise above an unchangeable predicament and to grow beyond oneself (Frankl, 1969, pp. 69-70). See also creative value, experiential value
B – Be – Just Be U-nique, as You are
And I can summarize it like this.
FACE whatever happens with a stand, take your life in your hands!
And BE U-nique, responsible human BEing!
I would like to add that I thank to dr Frankl every single day for the wisdom he shared as it helped me to understand and live life.
Source: Revised: Lewis, M. H, LOGOTHERAPY AND EXISTENTIAL ANALYSIS: A GLOSSARY OF ENGLISH TERMS, Revised: August 2014
Photo of me with my violin and music sheets: © Bojan Đurić, Sept 2020
Instrument photos from: https://www.gtdb.org/gdae/videos/-JY8UxCjZoY
