“The world is a place in which we alter nature, where we construct from our experiences…” –Keats
I hardly ever paid much attention to images from past experiences as I believed that it won’t do me any good and might even slacken the celerity of my progress. But very soon I learned that some experiences prove not only to be clues to handle future dilemmas but also serve as premonitions for customary pitfalls.
From time of my birth, to this moment (….sitting in a corner and blowing my wits out) I have been struggling for existence while climbing the steps of life, slowly overcoming the differences and obstacles as they grow in magnitude and intensity. It’s been a long time since the first burden of making an important decision was put on me by parents. Just like its nature, a problem arises when a situation becomes too good or too bad to be handled by an individual. Similarly, this quandary arose when I showed a bit of talent in all my extracurricular and personal activities. Although I had chosen the most demanding subjects in school that required time and effort, I thoroughly neglected it.
Hence the more medallions I brought home, the more tensed my parents grew, thinking about what stream I would choose that would become my profession and sole means of existence in future. I too felt the rise of dilemma because I could not neither separate myself from my extracurricular interests nor could extract myself away from Mathematics. Being diligent and assiduous in whatever I do, I found myself submerged in personal activities and hence at the end of a day, was too tired to cast proper thought on my academic plans. Concentration had long been a problem for me; therefore the effectiveness of my thoughts could never reach its zenith. So, with time the severity of the predicament increased as I couldn’t make a choice. That my whole career depends on this single choice, terrified me too. It’s obvious that I was trying to evade the fix instead of overcoming it. But, by the time I realized this, I had touched rock-bottom and only a miracle could save me from being wasted and dissipated….
……And indeed a miracle it was when I managed to break away from my passions and responded to my conscience when realization dawned upon me. While working industriously and diligently, I understood my potential of reaching extremes (but not by crooked methods) in times of adversity or in strife for success. I extracted essential tools, from this incident, for my survival in this world. I became more cautious in my approach to problems and understood the importance of time. This experience enabled me to use my self-confidence to keep calm during arduous times and act accordingly. I realized that nothing is impossible in this world, not even miracles, if we work with diligence and honesty. Principles should be strongly adhered to, even in times of adversity, for success is not only what one achieves but also how one achieves. I lacked exposure to describe some thrilling experience, but till now it was the most important decision that I had taken, along with the mental realization that if my goal can be descried, then nothing can stop it from being reached. I am ready for life’s challenges, no matter how gruesome it’s reality can, extracting important principles from my struggle because ‘Experience is not mechanical construction but an organic growth that increases with exposure to life’ and with experiences comes what Keat called “A sense of identity” that had long eluded my grasp.
