“Hello, Solitude. How are you doing today? Come and sit with me” ~ Thich Nhat Hanh, Vietnamese Monk
You have to be there to know it. You have to experience it to make sense of it. And when it happens, it will feel as though the world is against you—like an outcast cancer that everyone wants to get rid of. Is this the end for me? It begins with a question, and so the drill of mental exhaustion begins.
Life, you know man, is so hard and so is everything in the human race. Sadly, one cannot expect things to be easier, you just have to be wiser. Life, you see, is but a festival of events with each event layered with life-threatening problems. While some problems make us learn more about ourselves, our immediate environment, and the people around us, others remain a living scar in our hearts. And you know what? For the latter, there is absolutely nothing we can do about it. In short, problems no dey finish!
While reading a book Ikigai, some years ago, I stumbled across a term that resonated with me: Logotherapy. Simply put, it is the art of finding reasons to live. Truly, there are many reasons to live. It could be family, loved ones, your kids, your work, fame, money, name it. For a living soul, there has to be something that you look up to to make you happy. And by finding your reason, for the sake of that one thing, one will continue to press on regardless of the hurdles out there.
Indeed, with no exception, the world breaks everyone. The good, the bad, the ugly, and even this cool, calm, and collected writer. And those individuals that the world fails to break, it kills. Am I exaggerating? Certainly not. Look below, around, and above—everyone is trying to just hang on.
In the Book of Joy, Archbishop Tutu described humans as fragile creatures. He went on to say, it is from this weakness, not despite it, that we discover the possibility of true joy. We may cry more easily, but we will laugh more easily, too. Yet as we discover joy, we could as well face suffering in a way that ennobles rather than embitters. To stress this, we have difficulties without being difficult. We have heartbreak without being broken. Such is life, you know.
I have written quite some articles on how I maintained a positive attitude in the fact of mental breakdown. It is one of those life-changing experiences which frequently inspire me to continue. I want people to learn from my mistakes and experiences. Most importantly, I want others to handle hard-bitten times in a more outstanding way that would not break them down. As a man, as trouble no dey finish, you just have to learn it your way because you are on your own.
“I see badly, I hear badly, and I feel bad. But everything is fine.” ~ Jeanne Calmet
Sometimes, what is troubling you today might not be your point of concern tomorrow or in the coming days. The simple message here is, that every stage in our lives comes with troubling chaos. To manage this life-disturbing chaos, you have to assume the worst and get prepared in advance. The theory of negative visualization teaches us to imagine the worst thing that happen to be prepared if certain privileges and pleasures were ultimately taken from us. Consequently, we are likely to manage a difficult situation by keeping our heads above the water.
Let me keep it on a low here. I am not here to seduce you with words of encouragement that things will get better tomorrow. I would be lying if I said the essence of today’s letter is to wash away your sorrow. However, I would be honest one more time: take a deep sigh and think about your reason for living. Aye, sometimes life hits you with brick. But you have to trust in something. You have to believe in something, your loved ones, your gut, life, or whatever. Keep the faith!
Today's final message is, do not let momentary problems wash your peace away. In essence, trouble no dey finish and certainly this too shall pass.
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