Life is a crazy, beautiful, insane thing that unveils the stories of the world. Those stories consist of hurdles, triumphs and all the emotions comprised within. Those major points are guiding points, but they are not the whole story. What makes a story compelling is the mentality and universal truths the characters learn. A world where life is easy may be perfect, but that just doesn’t make for a good story. But do we understand appreciation? Do we understand how to appreciate all that life offers us?
Life is often compared to a roller coaster, but not today. We are going to channel our inner Forrest Gump’s and discuss life as box of chocolates. (Just run with it, now you know what you’re gonna get from reading this article).
Everyone, for the most part, loves chocolate. The only thing better than chocolate is a whole damn box of them. A box of varying flavours, textures and scents. Some flavours are definitely more appealing than others, but you can’t appreciate the good until you try the bad.
Life is the same way. The minute we are born, we receive our box. We don’t know what chocolates are in it, but we do know the purpose is to open and share it. Lives are for sharing; our hearts are for sharing; and the only way to share is to appreciate all that life provides.
We don’t choose the adversities we have to face. What we do choose is how we come out of those situations. Successful people are those who have a taste of the bad chocolate, but choose to move on to the next piece.
Living isn’t meant to be easy, but it isn’t meant to be dreadful either. We are here to appreciate the beauty surrounding us and to create a better world. This is a golden vision, but it requires a positive mentality that is harder to come by.
Getting through tough times means appreciating all occurrences—good and bad. Everything happens for a reason; it’s just not always clear right away. Everyone has had or will have a taste of nasty chocolate in their lives. Life is a gift, but the gift is only good when you make the best out of it.
Even though all struggles are different, a lot of them look the same. The ones I have had to face changed my life…for the better.
Instability
Life at home was not easy. Childhood was a pretty tough time for me. It consisted of various step-parents, abuse, permeating tension and other indescribable things. Did it suck? Yep. Do I wish it didn’t happen? Hell no. The struggle was in no way enjoyable, but it helped me become who I am today. Situations don’t arise that are too tough to handle; everything occurs as a lesson. I learned some of life’s most valuable lessons at an early age. I will always be thankful for that.
Depression
Depression is the chocolate filled with the hard-to-chew ooey gooey shit. Mental illness isn’t a temporary thing. Once you bite into it, the goop and taste stays in your life for a long time. The key to getting through it is to realise that there are so many more things in life you have to look forward to. There are more people who receive this chocolate than you would think. To overcome it, they fight—they chew, they swallow, they have a glass of water and move on. Yeah the taste is still there, but it’s just an aftertaste. This is a struggle that tests your limits–mentally, emotionally and physically. It’s tough, but you end up so much stronger than before and you change for the better.
Poverty
There are a ridiculous amount of people who know this one all too well. Poverty isn’t being a little low on money for the week. When I say poverty, I mean not knowing where your next meal is coming from. It’s not knowing where you’re going to sleep, or how you’re ever going to recover. Times of poverty are just like the ooey gooey chocolate; it leaves a taste in your mouth that you can’t seem to get rid of. Even though you can’t forget the negative, you also can’t forget the good it did. You learn what true appreciation is when you begin to appreciate the little things in life. True friends are revealed. You learn what the rest of your life will look like if you don’t push through.
This doesn’t cover all the horrible chocolates, but it does shed light on them. Adversities are not shameful; they are not humorous; they are not meant to bring us down. Adversities give us the wings to soar.
Your appreciation of life revolves around your mentality. Just as fear triumphs only when we give it power, adversity dictates only when we don’t look at the bigger picture. Our struggles are our badges of honour to be worn with pride.
You never know what you’re going to get in your box of chocolates. Just remember each piece serves its purpose to make you the ultimate you. The lessons you will learn on this journey are invaluable. Sometimes we have to learn the difficult way, but the farther you fall, the higher you can fly.
Life is just like a box of chocolates. You can’t decide what you’re going to get, but you can decide what you do with it.
