“Tough times don’t last, but tough people do,” was his echoing statement throughout his motivational talk.
It was at the end of his address that I realised that any success obtained in life is not attributed to intellect, pedigree, credentials, or even hard work.
It is attributed to resilience and our ability overcome our challenges as a way to inspire others.
There are few things in life that test one’s character the same way affliction and challenges do.
We get put into the crucible of life, not because we are weak, but because, in order for our lives to change or for our strength and character to grow, we need to be pushed to our weakest and lowest so that we are able to know what is indestructible in ourselves.
It is in this notion that I have found comfort and motivation in the pursuit of any goal, and any dream I may have.
It is important that we ask ourselves, “How much am I willing to endure, to have what I truly want in life?”
This is because to truly know the worth of anything, you must measure it by the sacrifice you are willing to make.
Such sacrifices are not measured by the tangible, but by how much we are willing to put to rest self-limiting beliefs, in order to live out our God-given purpose or dreams.
We need to identify our dream-killers, confront them, and defeat them.
More than any external factors or circumstances, it is we who stand in the way of our potential, by the stories we tell ourselves when we are going through tests and trials.
It does not matter who believes in you, or sees the best in you, if you do not see or believe that for yourself.
One must have the heart for life, because it is from the heart that our thoughts are shaped, and it is from our thoughts that our words flow, and it is that which shapes the direction of our lives.
Every challenge should be seen as an opportunity to find the lesson that life is trying to teach us, and by so doing using those lessons to help others.
Wisdom is not the knowledge of all things, nor is it the application thereof.
Wisdom is being able to be scarred by life’s hurts and wear the scars proudly; it is being able to go back to the very source of your pain and grow from it. But more so, wisdom is being able rewrite your life by renewing your mind and still have the same passion for life, the way an innocent child does.
Thabo Mbeki once said, “Those who complete the course will do so only because they do not, as fatigues sets in, convince themselves that the road is too long, the inclines too steep, the loneliness impossible to bear and the prize itself of doubtful value.”
May these words be our comfort, guide, and torch on the long road to our destiny.
