Is There A Reason?

Does everything really happen for a reason? Or is that just something we like to tell ourselves when something doesn't go as planned? Up until recently I was one of those individuals who strongly advocated for that optimistic point of view, but it's difficult not to question when it seems that thing after thing is not part of your master plan.

Along with "believing" that everything happens for a reason, I also believe that every individual has a purpose in this life. We were all placed on this Earth to leave a mark. One person's accomplishment may not be known to the world as much as someone else's, but it doesn't make it any less important. We are all significant and are part of the bigger picture.

Life, while it's beautiful, gets frustrating, especially when you try so hard to do the right thing and anything and everything feels wrong. Instead of moving forward and making progress on your journey, you find yourself constantly readjusting the sails on the metaphorical boat of life in hope that the wind will finally lead you in the right direction. It seems unfair. It becomes easy to feel hopeless and even easier to point fingers. What more can you do to feel like you are not just wasting your time?

You convince yourself there is a reason for the outcome of each situation gone bad and that eventually it will all be worth it. But where do you draw the line? When is enough, not being a coward or a quitter? Are we wrong for trying to make ourselves feel better about crappy situations for a moment by coming up with cliche advice? Or have we actually figured out one of life's black holes?

Do things really happen for a reason?

Yesterday I went to the orthodontist to get my splint readjusted and came out really upset when I realized how much more ridiculous I looked than the last time I was there. (I know how superficial this probably sounds, but it actually does lead to a deeper point).

In an attempt to help make me feel better, my mother told me to look at the bright side. "Things could be worse. There's a reason for all of this," she said. I was too angry to allow her words to make me feel better. However, that same feeling of frustration inspired the topic for this post and just like that, the doubts I had about things happening for a reason disappeared. If I hadn't gotten a thicker layer on my splint, I wouldn't have been upset and there would probably still be only two posts on my blog because the only other topic I had in mind was about boredom and I was not really feeling that. So this post is to the unexpected moments that reassure us that things DO happen for a reason and that nothing is a mere coincidence. It is not always going to click right away, but the moment it does makes it all worth it once again.

(I wrote this a while ago, and while there are moments I understand happen for a reason, there are still some I struggle with accepting.)


Picture Citations: Things Fall Apart so that Other can Fall together. http://yourdailyenlightenment.wordpress.com/2011/09/02/fall-together/