Climbing High

I would like to thank everyone who has been a great help and source of strength for me during the last year particularly my family and friends.

It was the scariest chapter of my life and at times felt like the last one. A slope so steep that I was not able to see or expect what was ahead. Remember when you were a kid and were curious about something that you could not see on the kitchen counter because you were not tall enough? You were determined to see what was there; perhaps it was something good to eat, so you would stand on your tippy toes expecting that would help you see clearly.

So, I did exactly that; stood on my tip toes expecting to see what lies ahead while attempting to resist the sharp fall. Rising up on the toes increased my reach while decreasing the friction. But I couldn’t have done that without the compassionate ones who held my hands to raise my heels off the ground while keeping me balanced. I am still in that position welcoming exciting opportunities to begin my new life and they are still holding on to me. At this point, I couldn’t agree more that ‘to love and be loved’ is the greatest strength in this world - My mother’s prayers, my father’s strength, my brothers’ goofiness, my best friend’s compassion became my inspiration to climb back up again.

It was never an end. It was only a gap; a void. When many things were taken away, I was blessed with immense love. I learned that even when we feel it’s the end of the world and there is nothing left, there is always SOMETHING that keeps us going, that inspires us and gives us the strength to face the challenges and remain patient.

Those who know me well can testify that I always got it ‘easy’ in life – my parents raised me up like a princess, always pampered and taken care of. Effortlessly blessed with whatever I wished for, whenever I wanted. Without being ungrateful, I sometimes feel that made my heart into a barren desert – unable to thoroughly understand what it means to be trialed and tested and relate to someone’s pain. I spectated the misery in our world but only as ‘topics’ to be studied and discussed. I am now able to view the trials as rain drops on that barren desert – seeds that lied dormant are now blooming. Sometimes that is exactly what we need to bring out the best in ourselves. It is like a slap to wake us up and be able to see and be grateful for all the pleasures and blessings in our lives. My life was a big blur and out of focus – now, the lens is calibrated making the picture clearer than ever.

This is not the end of my story; it is just the ‘beginning’.