Struggle and Pain

 Struggle and Pain

The beauty of struggle and pain is something that oftentimes is forgotten, especially for people going through hardships. The bottom line is that without struggle or pain or both, you will not be able to flourish into the best version of yourself. Bamboo takes a year to sprout out the ground, during which it expands roots underneath the surface, building a foundation, for when it does sprout it grows so fast it is considered to be the fastest growing plant. However, this is not always the case because a lot of the time you will be dealt a deck of cards with challenge after challenge just trying to push and keep you down and often it feels like that breaking through the ground will never happen. And sometimes it doesn't. But even if it does not work out in one path of life it will in another and do not forget all the valuable lessons and the resilience you have built up to that point. Simply put you would not be the person you are without it.

    These feelings often come up with things that we care a lot about and so it is not easy to keep a cool head and act responsibly. I myself have had many hardships in life, one of them having to do with basketball. I have made a lot of major decisions around basketball and even though I want to say that some were made for the better and some for the worst I do believe in every situation it put me in I learned something. All the sleepless nights and frustrated phone calls surely add up and make you upset but taking a deep breath and stepping away from it all for a second helps tremendously. Not achieving what you want to can be difficult to cope with, especially when you are still expected to show up every day and be at your best. Finding ways to manage your feelings and circumstances becomes very important when chasing your dream as it will allow you to continue to work and not get lazy in achieving your goal.

    For me, this was simply the circle that I had around me. It started with family, my parents have always been there to listen or to give advice and bless them as I might not be in the place I am today without them. Trust me when I say I could be in a bad spot if it wasn't for their patience. I also do not think I would have been able to continue to do what I do without the support of my closest friends. Sharing my problems with them, hearing them relate or give their input often helped with the situation at hand and if not it surely always helped me feel better. I hope each of you finds a good circle and remember that it goes both ways. Do not just call with problems but be available and open to helping others. Thank you to all who helped me in life and stuck with me!