Embracing Pain as a Path to Resilience

Dear Self,

Why do you always feel inadequate? Stop for a moment and think. Focus and tell me: why do you believe you're not enough? Not enough compared to what? To whom?

You always wonder what it’s like to live an ordinary life, but you never stop to ask yourself if that’s truly the kind of life you want. So, sit down and reflect. Think about who you are and where you are right now. Yes, I know—you feel insignificant like you’re stuck in the middle of nowhere. But let me tell you something: that’s okay. It’s okay to feel this way. It’s okay to experience this pain that you carry inside. And you, my dear, must go through this pain.

Embracing Pain as a Catalyst for Growth

"Pain deserves to be lived."

Live your pain, embrace your suffering. This is what makes you grow. Right now, you may not feel that growth, but believe me, you are growing.

I read these words:

"The more difficulties one sees in the world, the more perfect one becomes. The more you plow and dig the ground, the more fertile it becomes. The more you cut the branches of a tree, the higher and stronger it grows. The more you put gold in the fire, the purer it becomes. The more you sharpen steel by grinding, the better it cuts. Therefore, the more sorrows one endures, the more perfect one becomes..."
– Abdu’l-Baha, Star of the West

The meaning is so clear, isn’t it? These words speak about you, about me, about all of us.

The Rocky Climb

It’s a challenging journey, an uphill climb. I won’t lie to you—I’m afraid too. Afraid that this rocky climb will never end. And yet, I keep climbing.

You may ask me: why? What do you hope to find once you reach the top? Honestly, I don’t know. Yes, that’s right—I don’t know what awaits me at the top of this rocky climb. And to be truthful, I’m not even hoping to find something there. Maybe you’re right; maybe there will be nothing.

But still, I’ll have made the climb. My heart will be pounding in my chest. My hands will be dirty. My nails will be broken from gripping that jagged wall. My knees will be scraped because at times I’ll have crawled, completely drained.

The Lessons in the Journey

Perhaps, when I reach the top, I’ll be alone—maybe because no one followed me, or maybe because I started this journey alone. But when I’m there, at the top, on that peak, I’ll look around with a shiver of emotion. I’ll take a deep breath. I’ll dry the salty tears burning my skin.

At the top of that climb, I won’t find anything or anyone waiting to tell me how brave I’ve been. I’ll find myself. And I’ll be the one to say:
“Well done.”

• Well done, because even though it hurt, you always took one more step forward.

• Well done, because you didn’t just hope and pray—you acted.

• Well done, because appearances mattered less and less compared to true essence.

• Well done, because giving up was never an option, much less a choice.

• Well done, because you lived through the pain and made it your own.

Finding Serenity

Then, the time will come to sit down and peacefully take in the breathtaking view. Now I know what I’ll have found at the top: serenity. The serenity of finally understanding that, despite everything, I’m here, on this peak, enjoying the panorama.

And deep down, I know that if another rocky wall awaits me to climb, I can do it again, and again, and a thousand more times.

Before you feel inadequate again, turn around and admire the rocky wall you’re climbing.

See you soon,
V.