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September 13, 2020

The Good and Bad

Some say that we are just a speck of dust in a cosmic infinite. The phrase “a speck of dust” describes human life as insignificant. In other words, there is no sense of human life. However, man’s encounters in his lifetime offer evidence otherwise. Life is mostly a testimony that every experience, good and bad, serves a greater purpose. While our wish is to always be happy in our life, it is the low moments that often make us to greatly appreciate the good times. This is because happiness is subject to the laws of diminishing returns. At some point in every person’s life, there is an epochal experience that often appears to be negative at the beginning but turns out to be positive at the end.

Growing up my dream was to be an artist. Or more specifically, a painter. My interest in the field of the arts started as early as 1st grade where I would make paintings of my family in a little drawing book using crayons. Everything about art fascinated me, and after school, I would try to make works of art that I saw somewhere. However, despite my interest in arts, my parents had a different idea of the path they would like me to take. As a family tradition, my father wanted me to be a political leader. As a result, he and my mother repeatedly aroused my interest in social sciences and humanities as I approached high school and with time the interest kicked in. Consequently, my child’s desire to impress my parents outweighed my passion for art.

Although my personality is relatively shy and introverted, I decided to pursue a study of politics by taking the studies of history and lives of various renowned political figures. The high school environment which affords students with leadership potential an opportunity to exercise their skill through student elections enabled me to put the knowledge I accumulated to practice. I embarked on rigorous campaigns in the classrooms, school park, along classroom corridors and even in the school playground. As usual, weeks of campaigns are often capped by a day of debate in the school hall where candidates make presentations of their manifestos to the students.

Students filled the school hall by the numbers, that cold afternoon, to witness this annual event that determines who becomes the school captain. All candidates sat on the podium, and each was called forward by the school dean to make their presentation. I was still staring at my notes when I heard my name mentioned amidst thunderous claps and shouts in the hall. The first candidate had finished talking, and it was my turn. Suddenly, the hall went silent for minutes as I stood there with sweaty palms and a dry throat. Every attempt I made to say a word ended in futility. It is when loud laughs started coming from the back that I realized I should go back to my seat. That is how I dropped from the race. However, the ensuing embarrassment I was subjected to nearly made me quit my studies. Nonetheless, this moment of weakness gave me a revelation of my strength. Although I have stage fright, my ability to conceptualize complex ideas such as systems of governments in political studies is definite. This revelation has thus helped me in choosing my college field of study as well as the career path I would like to take which is policy making.

Therefore, it is in our moment of darkness that we often find light. The moments of uncertainty that we find our rightful path amidst the chaos surrounding our lives. It is prudent that we embrace the negative experiences that life throws in our path rather than avoiding them.