Roman statue of Atlas (2nd century AD). Already in the Farnese Collection, today at the National Archaeological Museum of Naples.

I’d barely been born and already had to fight to remain alive. That was seven and a half decades ago. Although it seems like yesterday that it happened. Sometimes a lifetime of achievement can be reduced to symbols or markers, to jarring memories of traumatic experiences. But after each of these, I connected with the universal harmony by walking in the sand, near the water, in contemplative thought, uniting with the rainbows above.

In the early 1950s, there were three vaccines routinely given to infants. They were for diphtheria, pertussis (whooping cough), and tetanus combined into a single shot (DPT), to be given in two doses. Being a responsible parent, my sweet, progressive mama Katie got me my first DPT vaccination in 1951.

Although I had a slight reaction to that first dose, I bounced back like a basketball—eyes wide open, cooing with contentment, and eager to take on the world.

Then, five months later, highlighting the inevitability of my human limitations, I got ill, ran a high fever, and fell into a deep coma. This was after my second dose. The doctor gave it to me against my mother’s advice, even after she reported my reaction to the first shot. The difficulties that came out of that illness would make me fight for my life. And so, not knowing what strong and persistent effort was at such a young age, I continued with a smile and worked through my disabilities, one at a time. I became unstoppable.

It would have been convenient to drown everything out, but I was driven to do everything anyone told me I couldn’t do. I had a mission. It was to be true to myself. I couldn’t live ‌a lie. Consequently, my whole life has been about speaking truth to power.

“I can do anything I put my mind to,” I told myself. That became my mantra, given from the inexhaustible universe. Facing the world’s stereotyping, oversimplification, and hypocrisy every day of my life, I met it all with temperance, grace, and kindness. Coming from the canopy near the stars, protecting me and giving me the strength to believe in myself, the universe fearlessly moved me forward with each flickering sparkle.

It wasn’t easy, believe me. Anyone who knows me knows I am not a quitter, that I take the bull by the horns and ride, holding on with my good right hand, searching with my heart and soul until I find answers and resolutions to my issues. As I respect innovative ideas, I encompass various dimensions such as special, cultural, social, and healthy thinking. I respect people’s differences and their backgrounds, thus embracing opportunity, encompassing it for all. I did that in an era that did not recognize these values.

With all my heart and soul, I gripped the hand of Atlas, with all the dreams and hopes of the world he supports. Organizational structures were not on my side, no matter how many boxes I checked. Often I felt like giving up and giving in. Yet, in the depths of my being, I would not.

I helped others to be brave, to have courage, no matter what. I stood the course. And, “I did it my way.”

Have you ever had the bravery to do something like this? Please share in the comments below.

Text ©2026 by Karen Lynn-Chlup. Image courtesy of Wikimedia.