To Stuggle Towards the Light

When written in Chinese, the word “crisis” is made up of two characters: danger and opportunity. 

It’s no secret that life is hard. War, poverty, and starvation have plagued man since the beginning of time. Sometimes even the most trivial of things can seem incredibly large, and that’s ok, the key is how we react in the face of adversity. 

When we are presented with a problem, we are presented with a choice. As Robert Frost sagely acknowledged in his poem The Road Less Traveled, “Two roads diverged in the woods, and I – I took the one less traveled by. And that has made all the difference.” 

If we choose to view trials as things that can only end in pain they almost certainly will. Conversely, if they are approached as chances for growth, we will benefit infinitely more because we are actively seeking good things. Either way, the attitude we take will make all the difference. 

More often than not, human beings under estimate their ability to overcome adversity; we forget how strong we are. 

A small child would consider a scratched hand a matter of considerable concern. “Look at my boo boo,” they would cry. As we grow older though, our injuries turn inward and our struggles become solitary, leaving different kinds of scars. 

Twenty percent of teenagers will suffer from depression by the time they reach adulthood. Thirty percent of that number will develop substance abuse problems. Suicide is a probable outcome.

Sadly, nearly 80 percent of those who suffer from teen depression can be successfully treated. Most choose not to because they think they are too far gone to matter. 

Just like the scars from a bike crash when we were ten, emotional scars, the ones no one else can see, are a testament to our ability to endure. 

When the Japanese mend broken objects, they exaggerate the damage by filling the cracks with gold.  They believe that when something’s suffered damage and has a history it becomes more beautiful. 

Struggles make us who we are. They shape us, mold us, and have the capability to improve us.

Still though, it is in our nature to look around and ask, “Why is this happening to me? Why does my life seem to be falling apart when the rest of the world stands firm?” 

Perhaps the answer can be found in nature. 

When a small, insignificant and lowly caterpillar is shut off from the world, wrapped tightly in its cocoon all alone, it struggles with all its might to break out and be free. 

Surely the caterpillar must think, “Why do I have to fight so hard. The birds don’t have to go through all this trouble. How come I can’t just magically become a butterfly?” 

The struggle to escape its personal prison is what eventually gives the caterpillar the strength to emerge from the darkness as something beautiful, even extraordinary. 

While before it was creepy and had to stumble over twigs and branches, the caterpillar is now a lovely butterfly capable of soaring over the world. 

Life is hard. That’s the point. If there were no pain there could be no joy. But thankfully, whatever else the world seems to rob us of, we always have the ability to choose how we will react. What road will we choose? Is the crisis of the moment the source of danger or opportunity? 

However you approach it, sometimes things are right no matter how much you have to work at them. 

Life can be inexpressibly worth living.