I could not think straight. All I could do was point fingers in my direction and blame myself for walking right into a trap. Forgive me for not being as vulnerable today but all I want to reveal is that I got into a bit of an imbroglio on Monday. For most of the car ride to the destination where I thought I would get the problem sorted, I was wondering how and why I got into the predicament in the first place. I sat in the car praying, in between panicking and imagining the situation escalating. I arrived at my destination hopeful only to be told that I needed to walk over to another location in order to be helped. Their response to me was anxiety-inducing to say the least, but I knew that I had little time to break down over their response. I started walking over briskly to their recommended location. On my way there, an image of a quote that I had posted on Candle Culture’s Instagram Story earlier in the day flashed through my mind; “But you’ll understand later”. An overpowering sense of tranquility accompanied that flashback and most of the negative emotions I had been feeling left me. I immediately switched the lens through which I was looking at the situation. Rather than ask myself, “Why am I going through this”, I began to wonder, “What is this trying to teach me?” I changed my perspective and that changed everything.

 
In a recently uploaded Youtube video, Jordyn Woods opened up about losing her father. The first thing that struck me was the composure with which she spoke about the experience. The next thing was the lesson she drew from what she described as the worst thing she has had to go through in life. In summary, things that you go through, particularly tougher times, are opportunities to “learn and grow.” You may not understand why the dots are not connecting. You may be trying to figure out why the lines are not falling into pleasant places just yet. You may be struggling to navigate life at Uni successfully. You may be wondering why the person you thought you knew is suddenly acting different towards you. You may not understand now but things will become clearer later. Every experience carries purpose embedded within it. If we change the perspective from which we analyse occurrences in our lives, then we become students rather than victims of those happenings.

I know that in the moment, it is hard to imagine pain having purpose. It is hard to see clearly when your eyes are tear-laden. Yet, I also know that it is something that we can train our minds to do, so that we are able to grow through what we go through. Sometimes you’ll fail at this task; I did so on Monday. Having said that, failure just tells you and I that we need to try harder to be in control of our minds, thoughts and emotions. A Greek poet once said, “They tried to bury us but they didn’t know we were seeds”. In applying this poetry quotation to the context of our lives, let us think of “They” as our difficult experiences, as those things that intentionally place us in unfavourable positions. And if we are seeds? That means that not only do we have the capacity to flourish in the dirt, but it is in our very nature.

QUOTES

“Not all storms come to disrupt your life, some come to clear your path”-Paul Coelho

“You will find that to be happy is not to have a perfect life. But use the tears to irrigate tolerance. Use your losses to train patience. Use your mistakes to sculpture serenity. Use pain to plaster pleasure. Use obstacles to open windows of intelligence.”-Pope Francis

“Eventually all the pieces fall into place. Until then, laugh at the confusion, live for the moment, and know that everything happens for a reason” – Unknown

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