by Napoleon Hill
Available in 122 free installments
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Be a part of a great cause. We know of a mother who lost her only child: a beautiful, happy, teen-age girl who brought laughter and inspiration to all who were fortunate enough to know her. In attempting to neutralize the grief of her loss, this mother developed a most magnificent obsession and became a part of a great cause. Today she is among the many thousands of American women who are making this world a better world to live in. Because of the wonderful work she is doing and the beauty of her Magnificent obsession, we wrote and asked her if she would be land enough to share with us the inspiration which helped her develop her Magnificent Obsession. Her response was:
"The searing agony of losing our beloved daughter is never far away in my mind. Conceived in love and nurtured with love, she held our entire future and all our hopes in every sense of the words. The Almighty took our only child from us at the age of fourteen-and-a-half. It Is impossible to describe our loss. The bright promise of the future went dull, for the light of our lives had been snuffed out. Everything that we had lived to the full became empty. All that was sweet turned bitter.
"My husband and I reacted as does everyone. Our very existence was encompassed by the eternally unanswered question: WHY? My husband retired, we sold our home, and seeking an escape, did extensive traveling. Only when we came face to face with the harsh reality that we couldn't run away from our sadness and our memories did we return. Slowly, ever so slowly, we recognized that our loss was not exclusive. We had sought solace and found none, for our motives were self-centered. It took months for my mind to begin to accept the fact that all the joys of children and good health and security are blessings the Almighty loans to each of us. These infinite mercies which we finite persons presume to take for granted should each be cherished for their true meaning and great and irreplaceable value.
"How could I earn the right to keep my other blessings? How could I show my appreciation and thanks to Heaven for allowing me my husband's love, for living in this great nation of ours, for my friends and my five unimpaired senses, for all the good things that surrounded me? Now my efforts to find myself began to move in the right direction.
"Although bereft of my dearest possession, the Almighty had given me, in recompense, an empathy with people and a clearer understanding of the problems besetting each of us. Proportionately, my own understanding in relation to adjusting to my loss grew apace, as my service in helping others increased.
"I sought to find the niche in social work that would ultimately give me the opportunity to leave my small heritage for humanity in lieu of my beloved daughter and found the answer in City of Hope.
"Now, as surely as time passes, my peace of mind, call it a Magnificent Obsession if you will, gains in stature. It is my earnest wish that all who suffer loss of a loved one can find comfort and serenity in service to others."
Today the City of Hope, national medical and research center, renders entirely free patient care. Its services are dispensed on the highest humanitarian level in the belief that "Man is his brother's keeper." This wonderful mother found peace of mind in a truly Magnificent Obsession.
The entire nation ? in fact the entire world ? can be affected by the Magnificent Obsession of just one man who wants to share a part of what he has. Orison Swett Marden was a man who shared a part of what he had and developed a Magnificent Obsession that changed the attitude of people from negative to positive.
The seeds of thought in a book grew into a Magnificent Obsession. At the age of seven Orison Swett Marden became an orphan. He was "bound out" for his room and board. At an early age he read Self-Help, by the Scottish author Samuel Smiles who, like Marden, had become an orphan as a young boy and had found the secrets of true success. The seeds of thought in Self-Help created a burning desire in Marden which grew into his magnificent obsession and made his world a better world in which to live.
During the boom that preceded the panic of 1893, Marden owned and operated four hotels. Since their operation was entrusted to others, he was devoting much of his time to writing a book. Actually, he was fulfilling a desire to write a book that would motivate American youth as Self-Help had motivated him. He was working diligently on his inspirational manuscript when an ironical twist of fate struck him and tested his mettle.
Marden entitled his work Pushing to the Front. And he took as his motto: "Let Every Occasion Be a Great Occasion for You Cannot Tell When Fate May Be Taking Your Measure for a Larger Place!"
