Almost all of us have had cases when we complained about our life, complained that it was unfair to us. But I want to tell you about a woman who lived in a capsule for more than 60 years and was grateful for that. The heroine of my article today is Martha Mason.
Martha is a Native American. She was born in 1937 as an absolutely healthy child and until the age of 11 was a very cheerful, intelligent girl. However, in 1948, a misfortune happened in the Mason family: Martha's older brother died of polio, and soon she herself felt the symptoms of this disease.
The disease confined the girl to the bed in the most literal sense of the word - in just 1 month the muscles of her body completely atrophied. She also lost the ability to breathe on her own. From that moment on, Martha was hospitalized in the hospital, where an artificial respiration apparatus, which was a capsule, was responsible for each inhalation and exhalation. The pressure inside her was constantly changing, which helped Martha breathe.
The doctors did not give the girl's parents false hopes and immediately warned that Martha would not be able to live in the capsule for more than a year, but in reality everything turned out differently. She "lingered" in an artificial respiration apparatus for 61 years - it became a new body for her.
Thanks to her loving parents and loyal friends, Martha graduated from high school and even graduated from two universities, becoming a journalist. She was even hired by a local newspaper.
How did she write the articles? First, Marta dictated material to her mother, and she sent the articles to the editorial office. Later, the girls installed a voice recognition program on the work computer and Marta was able to work independently.
It is worth noting that despite her limited lifestyle, Mason never complained about her fate. Of course, she realized that she could have lived in a completely different way, but she might not have lived at all. Martha learned to look for positive moments in everything and began to treat the capsule as a part of herself.
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In addition, the girl had a lot of friends who helped her in everything. She even hosted parties and social gatherings to make herself feel fulfilled. Marta clearly realized that it was necessary to enjoy life and appreciate every day lived in absolutely any situation.
Mason even wrote a book about life in a capsule, "Inhale, Exhale: Life in the Rhythm of an Artificial Respirator."
Martha lived inside the capsule for 61 years and during all this time she practically did not leave her. Perhaps the weaker-minded person called the respirator a cage, but not it. The woman thanked her “iron lungs” every day for the opportunity to live.
Martha Mason died in 2009. At that time she was 71 years old. She was very strong in spirit and appreciated every day she lived. And I think we all need to learn from her. And at the moments when it seems that it is very difficult to remember Martha and her amazing love of life.