“Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of the human freedoms—to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way.”
I recall stories of shipwrecks and castaways too. To your point, many were humbling and inspirational stories of survival, but others described people quickly taking their own lives purely out of despair in what many would consider paradise. I think we know now that genetics and chemistry play a role in one's outlook (and ability to persevere), so be careful not to 'blame the victim' where people are struggling to find this light. Some have it inside themselves and it cannot be extinguished, but others are already struggling every day even for a glimpse of a distant glow.
I recall stories of shipwrecks and castaways too. To your point, many were humbling and inspirational stories of survival, but others described people quickly taking their own lives purely out of despair in what many would consider paradise. I think we know now that genetics and chemistry play a role in one's outlook (and ability to persevere), so be careful not to 'blame the victim' where people are struggling to find this light. Some have it inside themselves and it cannot be extinguished, but others are already struggling every day even for a glimpse of a distant glow.