Life Lessons 8

Denis Parsons Burkitt

Irish surgeon
man of God
generous, intelligent, kind, strong-willed, spiritual, humble
plotted the geographical incidence of childhood cancer affecting the jaw and other parts of the body, in Africa
generated interest in a viral cause of this cancer
initiated chemotherapeutic treatment of the cancer to considerable benefit
became interested in dietary involvement of diseases in affluent industrialized societies
with the help of others…
and once more studying the geographical occurrence and distribution of disease
and surmising possible causes…
came to see DIETARY FIBER as an essential factor in preventing diseases such as bowel cancer, other cancers, diverticulosis, obesity, diabetes, heart disease and many other common chronic diseases of the so-called first world
received and embraced warmly by listeners
a man of sincerity, passion, conviction, confidence and drive
awarded extensively for his career work
his scientific legacy lives on
Denis helped multitudes with his message of health by emphasizing preventive medicine over curative medicine.
Through illustrations…
Denis showed that it is better to turn off the faucet than to mop up the floor,
and it is better to fix a faulty shelf than to fix the broken items that fall from it
even if it is not financially lucrative to do so
Denis taught that the measure of a person is in his or her attitude, motivation and character rather than in his or her intellect or ability
a wonderful teacher and soul
a quote from Denis’s diary from the year 1985 reads,
“The only thing of lasting importance in a man’s obituary is whether he was a child of God and has consequently gone to his Father. To die young and go to one’s Father is no disaster. To die old and go into darkness is tragedy.”