“The most beautiful people I’ve known are those who have known trials, have known struggles, have known loss, and have found their way out of the depths.” – Elisabeth Kübler-Ross
A Series of Endless Struggles
We struggle. We strive. We yearn for a better life. Life is one big beautiful struggle or nothing at all.
Do you wish life was without challenges or setbacks? Many of you would answer an emphatic YES! But if that were so, how would you realise your potential without struggle? Without growth life would be dull and dreary. We strive and struggle so that we may overcome – for it is in overcoming that we prevail and realise our magnificence.
Now you might regard yourself as just an ordinary person. Perhaps for some of you, the desire is to win the Nobel Prize for scientific achievement. Nonetheless, we are all equipped with an inner calling to grow and thrive. It is inbuilt into our genetic coding to grow into a better version of ourself. As you reach to become more, you join forces with universal intelligence to express your infinite potential.
We play a small role in the greater orchestration of events which take place in the physical universe. This does not mean we play an insignificant role in the co-creation process, rather the decisions we make today have a ripple effect in our lives and the lives of others. We are all connected on a deeper level, since our lives are all intertwined.
Your beliefs frame your perceptions. Your perception colours your view of reality, so that what you expect is what you get. It’s an ongoing discussion that life is one struggle after another. Yet it doesn’t have to be that way. There is far more to life than your impression of it. Notice I used the word impression, since the way you perceive the world is marked by your observation of it. Life does not have to be a chain of endless struggle, paying the bills and being dissatisfied in one’s job.
The same bias of struggle is apparent toward ageing. One need only consult with a minority who believe ageing is an inevitable process burdened with a gradual decline in mental and physical ability. We fail to concede that we have the power to slow down the ageing process by regularly tending to our health. Suddenly instead of being victims to the forces of life, we have the power to decelerate the ageing process and thus live richer and fuller lives.
“Quietly endure, silently suffer and patiently wait.” – Martin Luther King Jr., Why We Can’t Wait
Life Waits for You to Make the First Move
Life offers us moments of bliss when we least expect it. The lucky break that comes just at the right time, having devoted much of your life pursuing your passion. Our struggles pale into insignificance when we’re in love and committed to serving others. Life does not come with a user’s manual – we approach things blindly, hoping they will yield a favourable outcome. I don’t know about you, but I wouldn’t have it any other way – the joy of overcoming is rewarding and much a part of the human condition.
Life is willing to offer you so much or so little. Life offers heartache, pain, emotional trauma and moments of anguish. This is contrast to the delightful moments of falling in love, witnessing the birth of your child and of course personal victories. Pain exists to give rise to joy. The principle of duality, contrast and paradox work in synergistic harmony to one another – Yin energy is the complement of the Yang energy.
Life is called a journey, for it is the experiences we embark on that have a lasting effect on our lives. Life is a series of highs and lows. Those moments of bliss or episodes of agony remain a central focal point long after the experience has taken place. We should not assume that life will conform to our desires at the drop of hat. We must allow life to flow through us – unimpeded. We do so by remaining receptive to what shows up; even if we believe otherwise.
The title of this blog illustrates the dichotomy which unfolds in our life. Without the drama and the struggle, life would serve no function. The purpose of life is to create itself anew within each moment. Through chaos life is born, which serves as the impulse for the creative expression of life. We see this application apparent throughout nature.
Diamonds are formed under intense pressure, heat and agitation. The turbulent weather patterns eventually recede to give way to the welcoming spring and autumn months. We look forward to these seasons rather than take them for granted. Imagine for a moment if we had one season for all twelve months of the year? There would be little to appreciate in terms of the contrasting weather changes. Contrast emerges in nature so that we may experience diverse realities.
I invite you to re-frame your challenges as analogous to the seasonal changes. Nothing is permanent. Painful experiences come and go if we allow them passage through us. Rather than view life as a series of endless dramas, appreciate that all your personal battles are leading you toward the realisation of your deepest wisdom. This wisdom connects you to the same intelligence that instructs the trees to bear leaves in season. It is serving you every moment. It might not show up in the way you expect it, yet it is always working.
Life can be a series of beautiful struggles or nothing at all.
spelled realized wrong
Queen’s English! Thanks Cole.