We are here to add what we can to life, not to get what we can

“We are here to add what we can to life, not to get what we can from life.” – William Osler

In this noble declaration, Sir William Osler, the great physician and humanist, captures the essence of a higher calling—the call to serve, to contribute, and to live not as consumers of existence, but as creators within it. His words resound like a bell across the ages, reminding us that life is not a market where we take what we desire, but a sacred trust, given that we might enrich it through compassion, work, and love. To add what we can to life is to recognize that we are each stewards of something greater than ourselves, and that the true measure of a soul is not how much it gathers, but how much it gives.

The origin of this wisdom lies in the heart of Osler’s life itself. Known as one of the founders of modern medicine, he was not merely a man of science, but of spirit. Living in an age when medicine was still learning to heal both body and heart, Osler taught that the physician’s task was not only to cure, but to care—to bring light to suffering through kindness, humility, and understanding. His teachings went beyond hospitals and textbooks; they were lessons in humanity. He believed deeply that each person, regardless of station, holds the power to contribute something of value to the great tapestry of existence. “We are here to add,” he said—to leave the world better, if only by a single act of goodness or a single life touched.

The ancients would have understood his words well. The Stoics of Greece and Rome taught that man’s duty is not to seek pleasure, but to fulfill his part in the harmony of the universe. They said that the wise live according to nature—that is, in cooperation, not conquest. Likewise, the sages of the East proclaimed that joy arises not from taking, but from giving; that the river flows freely only when it nourishes all it passes. Osler’s quote stands among these eternal truths, calling humanity to remember that service is the path to greatness, and that selfishness is the shadow that dims the soul.

Consider the life of Florence Nightingale, who, during the Crimean War, could have sought comfort and security, but instead walked into the filth and suffering of war-torn hospitals. She did not ask what life would give her, but what she could add to it. With lantern in hand, she moved through darkness, bringing light to the dying, hope to the broken, and dignity to the forgotten. Her reward was not wealth, but legacy—the kind of immortality that belongs only to those who serve selflessly. She embodies Osler’s truth: that to add to life, even in hardship, is to live fully and well.

To get what we can from life—wealth, pleasure, power—is the path of the ego, and it leads always to emptiness. For desire is an endless fire: the more we feed it, the hungrier it becomes. But the one who seeks to give discovers abundance that never fades. He who lifts another’s burden finds his own spirit lighter; she who gives joy discovers that joy multiplying in her heart. This is the paradox of the generous soul: in adding to life, we are ourselves made whole.

Osler’s wisdom also reminds us that life itself is brief, and its value is not measured in possessions gathered, but in meaning created. When we die, our riches, titles, and ambitions fade into dust, but the kindness we have offered, the beauty we have built, and the love we have sown continue to ripple through time. The artist leaves his art; the teacher leaves her wisdom; the friend leaves the warmth of memory. Every small act of goodness becomes a thread in the eternal fabric of human progress.

So, my child of the living day, take this teaching to heart: seek not to take, but to give. Ask not, “What can I gain from this life?” but rather, “What can I give to it?” Give your labor to your work, your honesty to your words, your compassion to your fellow beings. Plant trees whose shade you may never sit beneath. Speak truth even when it costs you comfort. Love without condition, and let your life be an offering, not a transaction. For when you live this way, you will discover the quiet and radiant joy of fulfillment—the joy of knowing that you have added to life, and that life, through you, has become richer and more whole.

And when your final hour arrives, may you look upon your days not as moments of taking, but as gifts given—and find peace in knowing that you have lived not merely as one who existed, but as one who contributed to the world’s light. For this, as Osler teaches, is the true and eternal success.