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Dr. Willig, Wanda, was a gracious woman who enjoyed her life.
Elsewhere in this Journal, Althea Homer has asked, “What is there about each of us that is personal and idiosyncratic as our DNA and that, training and theory aside, comes out in our way of being with our patient?”
For me, as Wanda's patient, what came out in her way of being with me was her grace and her capacity for pleasure and joy in life. Wanda's joy was joy in the sense that Yeats spoke of it, as “the will which labors, which overcomes obstacles, which knows triumph.”
I've taken that as her legacy to me personally, but because she was my training analyst it's a professional legacy as well and her influence reaches into the lives of my patients each day and will continue to do so far into the future. She's with me in my work always.
This accomplished woman began her career as a physician in 1934 in Vienna and practiced for over 50 years with skill and compassion. She clearly enjoyed her work, but just as clearly she enjoyed many other aspects of her life. Her whole-hearted approach to a whole life was, and continues to be, inspiring.