Chapter 17: Looking at struggles in a positive way

“Human progress is neither automatic nor inevitable…

Every step toward the goal of justice requires sacrifice,

suffering, and struggle; the tireless exertions

and passionate concern of dedicated individuals.”

– Martin Luther King, Jr.

Slavery

I believe that this quote from Martin Luther King Jr is perfect to describe this particular topic as what I am trying to explain is that sometimes suffering and struggling can help us to live life in a more profoundly way. I’d like to start by giving the example of slavery, a moment in time where being black was considered to be a sin in the eyes of some people. Black people were made slaves and were judged just based on the skin colour. Slaves were forced to work and not get paid, they were punished by getting whipped shackled, beaten, mutilated, branded and imprisoned, and women were usually sexually abused and raped by their masters.

However, these people would sing and care for each other, they fought hard to be free, they tried to escape and didn’t give up till they finally got their freedom. Being a slave made them stronger and appreciate the benefits of being free. The struggles that the black ethnicity goes through makes us more able to have survival instincts than someone who only ever lived from privileges as they never had the chance to experience the worst way of living therefore, so if these privileged people find themselves in a difficult situation they are often too weak to get through it.

Even today, black people tend to go through a lot but you see many that came from the worst way of living succeeding and achieving their goals, from nothing to something. I do believe that the Black History should be more recognised globally and given more respect because even today in different parts of the world black people are still fighting twice as hard to have the same opportunities as everyone else. As a black woman, I am proud of my ethnicity of achieving so much since slavery and how we are still fighting for our rights and despite this situation we are happy people, we dance, we sing, we laugh, we have a great culture and it definitely makes us unique.

*Note: I would really suggest watching Underground on Netflix, it is a series based on slavery and it reflects the struggles of being a slave back in that era.

Motherhood

Also, the struggle of being a mother for example, women will carry a baby or in some cases more than one baby in their uterus for at least 9 months. This can be tiring and uncomfortable sometimes, I cannot speak about it myself as I am still to experience pregnancy but women that do get pregnant tend to go through a lot as they are carrying another human being and eating for two. They are also willing to sacrifice their body for their babies. Their skin stretches in the stomach area as the fetus grows, this also leaves stretch marks and other biological changes in the women’s body.

Even after giving birth, women sometimes go through Postpartum due to the struggles of having to take care of a tiny person and not having enough sleep. But it is all worth it because they end up building and unbreakable bond with their child and that same child can help them deal with their emotions and make them forget of their life problems and in some cases it helps them grow as person and bring joy in their lives. This means that after struggles, there is light in the end of the tunnel that can make you appreciate life more.

“Strength and growth come only through continuous effort and struggle.”

– Napoleon Hill

Someone with struggles vs someone without struggles

Someone who has been through difficult times constantly is more likely to survive and adapt to unforeseen circumstances than people who always lived a happy peacefully life. This is because those people that have it bad for themselves build a personal development based on their situation and can resist to change as they have the ability to learn and grow as no one likes to live in discomfort therefore, they either try to adapt or improvise to live a better life. This makes life more meaningful as you are working towards something better rather than not having any goals or dreams. So appreciate when life throws you lemons so you can then make lemonade and enjoy the taste!