"In the middle of our own life stories, we try to make sense of what is going on. Instinctively, we sense that things are not the way God designed them." (Chapter 3 on How People Change) Throughout the several stages in our lives, we seek to make sense of things and the events occurring in our lives at those times. We are always in constant pursuit of knowledge, attempting to connect the dots and come up with an understandable explanation of who we are by reflecting on what occurs in our lives. Such a period brings to light the disparity existing between what we expect from certain situations and the reality, and we realize something is wrong. Making sense becomes an intriguing but difficult task because we ask questions whose answers remain unknown to us yet.
The quote above illustrates the notion that at some subconscious level, we recognize that something is not quite correct regarding everything around us and the manner in which they ought to be. The notion is very strong because, on one side, it reflects the natural realization of the imperfection of our world and life in general. It seems that there always remains an impression in the mind that something went wrong during the creation of our world by God; there is always something that does not fit well and makes us feel disappointed, frustrated, unhappy, and sometimes even depressed.
As regards such a notion, there have been cases in my life that would make me think about it. To begin with, within a week, I'll be having my 22nd birthday. In any case, what struck me was the fact that though life hasn't always been perfect, I have been extremely lucky to live so far. There have been hard times when life brought uncertainty, losses, and many other problems, but the fact remains that I am here and am happy that it all turned out to be for the best. Nevertheless, although a lack of direction for my life terrifies me, in turn, it frees me from the unexpected element of life.
Some of the discoveries which have helped me have been the discovery of the importance of being in a family, more specifically the family which I have been adopted into. Although a number of things may not work out in my favor due to my own shortcomings, I am happy for being born in a loving family which continues to shower its love on me irrespective of whatever happens in my life. With such a discovery, I get to know that although there may be chaos going around in the world, there is still some good news too; but then the good news can only come from God alone.
In addition, such gratitude brings me to the point where I start asking myself if this design incorporates those unexpected encounters of grace that I have experienced so far. Perhaps, if things happened according to plan, if nothing was wrong and did not go as intended, perhaps such encounters would be meaningless to me and would not impact me in any way. On the contrary, being aware of the importance of making mistakes and errors allows me to learn something new and to humbly turn to the Almighty, who gives me existence through His love for me.
Moreover, the quote makes me think about the state of being human—our shared struggle to accept the way things are when they do not measure up to how they ought to be. In a sense, we all realize that there is something amiss in our lives and something wrong with our existence in general, but in realizing that, a desire to achieve redemption through divine interference arises. The idea of a divine plan helps cultivate patience and kindness in accepting our lot because even as life is filled with struggles, we know that God is doing something wonderful in our lives as He works through these problems.
As I already have reached the age of almost 21 years, I think that I have come across the purpose and humility of life. The value of life is actually tremendous, despite its apparent fragility, as it becomes resilient owing to a variety of lessons I have learned each year. Despite how unpredictable life can be, I have learned so much from my life due to the blessings bestowed by my parents and God’s Providences, who guided me through various challenging phases of my life.
In summary, there is a universal truth conveyed in the above quote concerning the experiences of humans because humans understand that although life does not go the way that God wants, there is still a reason for things. Humans live their lives amidst moments of clarity and uncertainty; amid pain and joy, all wrapped up in God’s grace. As I approach another birthday of mine, I am thankful for having been given an opportunity to celebrate yet another year, for having my loving family by my side who welcomed me with open arms, and for the efforts of making sense of this amazing and flawed world.