Don’t complain of the thorns in the rose; be grateful for roses among thorns (1)

Life has many sides to it and many times we have do not have much choice but to accept each side life turns at and to us. Life can be  smooth, joyful and a great pleasure but life also  comes with pain, inconvenience and adversity. We all love and cherish the good times when things go our way -at such times we enjoy life, we are enthusiastic and have great hopes about the future.

However in life we will also encounter challenges, calamity and crisis. At such times when we run into turbulent waters, life can be a rough ride. Life at such times can be frustrating and a drag which if care is not taken can leave us permanently damaged in the process.

“Sometimes life isn’t all rainbows and sunshine. Throughout every person’s life, there will be hard times where it’s forecasted to be dark and gloomy, with seemingly constant showers. And when it rains, it pours. It is important to use these difficult times as life lessons, growing and shaping you to blossom into a stronger and wiser person every day!” Ed Lester

Setbacks, disappointments, failures, dashed hopes are inevitable so we should not hide our heads in the sand pretending or assuming life will always be a smooth sail but rather equip ourselves to handle and overcome them so they do not hinder and truncate our dream and life purpose.

• Rarity of neat naira

“It is inevitable that you will encounter adversities and setbacks when you pursue your goals. The question is, how will the adversities and setbacks affect you?” Sam Silverstein

The issue is not whether we will encounter adversity but what would we do at such times? Are we going to crumble under the weight of challenges or are we going to stand up to it and come out strong? Are we going to let adversity terminate what we know we ought to do? Adversity, though not a pleasant experience, need not bring our lives to a standstill. Life might be tough but it need not be an impossible road.

“Life has a way of kicking us when we’re down. And just when we think we can’t fall any lower, we get kicked again. But it’s important to remember that setbacks, failures, and tragedy are a part of life. Whether we manage to find joy and success in the daily struggle of life is largely dependent on our ability to persevere through even the toughest adversity without ever giving up.” Quincy Seale

We cannot accept the good and not want to handle the bad. The issue is accepting the good and knowing how to handle the bad in a way that the bad does not ruin the good. Roses are good but to pick and enjoy them we have to handle the thorns.

“The rose has thorns only for those who would gather it.” Chinese Proverb

“She who loves roses must be patient and not cry out when she is pierced by thorns.” Olga Brouman

Life is for the strong hearted who can withstand and weather the storms of adversity