We are all a product of the time that we go through. Time
plays the biggest role in shaping the way things pan out for each of us during
our lifetime.
This is an unalterable truth about Life. But
the way we are conditioned to think about time, thanks to the way we are
raised, we are either totally driven by a belief that everything about our
lives is pre-ordained and pre-set in, and by, time or that nothing is. A more
aware approach to Life, however, can be helpful.
Although there may be several arguments or
methods that claim to understand how time works during one’s lifetime, the
reality remains that there will be some times in Life, certain phases, when
nothing may work for you, the way you plan for it or want it to work, despite
your best efforts. This reality may express itself differently in the context
of each one’s Life. But this reality will be un-missable, unmistakable. Now,
those who use methods, like the science of astrology for instance, to make
sense of the “play of time”, may find some way to rationalize what’s happening
to them. Those who either have no access to or interest in such methods may
simply see a pattern, “of results not coming as expected despite their best
efforts”, to their lives. They may either choose to go with the flow of such a
pattern, which is go with the flow of their lives, or feel defeated and
depressed.
I have learnt that the simplest, and the most
peaceful, way to live Life is to have faith in Life’s plan for you. I have come
to understand it as The Master Plan. And I have come to realize, over the
eventful years of my Life’s roller-coaster experience, that The Master Plan has
no flaws. So, even if something evidently is not going per a plan that you
have, and so you conclude that things are going “out of control”, everything is
still happening just the way it should, for you to live the Life that has been
designed for you. This perspective has been immortalized by Steve Jobs
(1955~2011) when he said: “You can’t connect
the dots looking forward; you can only connect them looking backwards. So, you
have to trust that somehow the dots will connect in your future. You have to
trust in something – your gut, destiny, Karma, Life, whatever. This approach
has never let me down and it has made all the difference in my Life.”
I don’t need to substantiate this point with a story from my Life or
recall Jobs’ famous Stanford commencement speech of 2005. I invite you to
review your own Life. And you will see the pattern, your personal journey line,
as evidence of this point. Wherever you are today has undoubtedly been a result
of all your efforts and intentions. Even so, you will notice that at the most
crucial junctures, mystically, an unexpected twist or turn has either helped
you move forward or has led to an unplanned, unscheduled change in direction.
Without this providential play of time, or Life, you wouldn’t be where you are
today. This perspective is as good even when you don’t like being where you are
today. Perhaps, Life has laid hurdles in your path – a curious turn of events
has delayed or stunted your progress. Whatever it is that you may be faced with
or are going through, know that there’s a larger design that’s not evident to
you just now. Someday, in the future, you too, like Jobs’ will connect the dots
backward and marvel at how beautiful your Life’s design always was!
You can appreciate this perspective or debunk it. You can be wedded to
the “Life-is-pre-ordained” or “it’s-all-play-of-time” theories or you can
believe that you control everything. Whatever way you choose, you can’t escape
the reality that Life pans out for you, as it does for me, only in its own
unique way. And the only way to live such an inscrutable
Life, happily, peacefully, is to simply accept what is.
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