We all have to do things in our lives that we would rather not do.
We cannot get our way all of the time.
Nor would we likely be happier if we did.
We need resistance to make us stronger.
Friction helps to develop our character.
Pressure forces us to grow in ways we otherwise would not.
If we got what we wanted all of the time, life would be too easy.
It would be boring.
We would have no reason to grow, evolve, and change.
Therefore, when challenges arise, when we come up against an obstacle, or when we face unexpected difficulties, we should ask ourselves how this will help us, what we will learn from this experience, and how we can use this to improve our character, our relationship, or our lives.
The struggles we go through may someday become someone else’s inspiration.
We do not always know why we face the challenges we face.
Things are not always clear while we are in the middle of difficult times.
If we make it through, however, if we persist and do not give up, we will come out on the other side with valuable experience.
This experience can be shared with others who are going through similar difficulties.
And, this may be enough to help them get through what they are going through.
Our experience may be the inspiration they need to persist and to not give up.
So we owe it to who we will someday be and who we may someday help to keep going, to see this through to the other side, and to turn our struggles into experiences that we can share generously and bravely so that we can all keep going.
It stifles our growth, progress, and forward motion.
Blame keeps us in the past.
It blinds us to the possibilities of the future.
If we want to achieve our fullest potential, we must rid ourselves of the desire to blame others for whatever obstacles, challenges, and difficulties we face.
We risk being overwhelmed by life’s challenges whether we try too hard or not hard enough, but only one of these options can lead us beyond our difficulties to success.
Life will not always be easy.
We will struggle.
At times, we will be overwhelmed by decisions, challenges, and setbacks.
This is true whether we are trying to get ahead or not.
Effort, trying our hardest, doing our best, does not guarantee us success.
It certainly does not guarantee that things will be easy, that we will not be overwhelmed, or that we will not fail.
The only thing that effort promises us is that we can be successful, not that we will.
Lack of effort, on the other hand, does not offer us any promises of success either.
Lack of effort does, however, guarantee that we will not be successful.
The choice we must make, therefore, is whether we want to take a chance on the possibility of success or if we want to guarantee our failure.
Through effort, at least we have a chance.
At least we have hope.
Life will still be difficult.
We will still struggle and get overwhelmed at times.
As long as we do not give up, as long as we continue to push forward, we give ourselves the opportunity to make our suffering temporary.
Holistic Budo: As it is in budo, so too it is in life. As it is in life, so too it is in budo.
Robert Van Valkenburgh is co-founder of Taikyoku Mind & Bodyand Kogen Dojo where he teaches Taikyoku Budo and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.
All photos by Robert Van Valkenburgh unless otherwise noted.
Meditations on God 