Back in high school, there was a girl, we’ll just call her Melanie. She was a bright student, quiet, shy, but she always did the work that she was supposed to do. She completed tasks, helped her friends, and never said no to people. She was the resident “yes” girl and yes, that got her into trouble. Unfortunately, it didn’t take much to throw Melanie off her A-game. Take her Pre-Calc class for example.
Aside from the teacher, Mr. M, being strict and not the easiest person to approach, the subject matter was difficult for Melanie. She did her best, tried her hardest, and every time–nearly every time–she got Cs. Sometimes there were Bs, but she started to accept that maybe she was just a C student in math. Mr. M even approached her and told her that she should go down to the resource center, because someone could help her. She did all she could, in her eyes, and yet nothing happened.
“I really tried. It just isn’t for me. It just doesn’t make sense. I can’t do it. It’s a losing game,” she told her parents, who told her it was alright, but secretly, she knew they weren’t so happy about it. Melanie felt terrible, but in her eyes, she thought she had done all she could have done. Math was not for her, and her teacher wouldn’t help her.
Does this sound like anyone you guys know? Here’s a fun fact: Melanie was me.
Life happened to me for the longest time, not for me. Instead of seeing setbacks as just setbacks and challenges, I used to see them as roadblocks. I didn’t see another way out. To me, as long as I got past the finish line, even with Cs, I was fine. I played the victim role quite good. I own up to it.
I am happy I no longer fit that stereotype. At some point, I stopped waiting for the knight in shining armor to arrive with his noble steed, ready to take me away from the hurricane around me. Somewhere deep inside of me, I realized that I had to take hold of the reigns and take control of my life, or it would control where I went.
There is no one else who can save you, but yourself. And you have to want to save yourself. That’s the harsh truth.
Personally, I believe that everyone in the world can be put into two categories: victims and heroes/heroines. Victims have life happen to them, but heroes/heroines, even if they fail, have life happen for them. Every negative becomes a lesson or a positive to the heroes/heroines. It’s not because they receive challenges of less immensity. It’s because they choose to look at it differently.
Victims have dimly lit glasses through which they see the world, where things tend to be half glass empty instead of full. Heroes/Heroines, in fact, see the world through rose colored lenses, or realistically, knowing that the glass is half full. Appreciation and gratitude for the world around them drives them to overcome. They choose to see this potentiality, as opposed to sinking in the face of adversity.
So who are you? Are you the victim of your story, or are you the hero? Are you willing to change your narrative? Are you ready to change where your story is headed?
