Believe in You

Who has not experienced trying times at some point during their journey of life, times when one wonders why their hard-work is not paying off, why all odds are turned against them and why there is nothing really they can do about it? Life really seems like a vicious circle of misplaced situations and torrid results. It only hurts to look around you and see others in seemingly better situations. At such times, I hear my parents' voices telling me to “try your best and leave the rest to God”. Life is full of ups and downs, twists and turns. What goes down can only come up!

How else do you explain the manner in which Shilpa Shetty came out of sheer oblivion to become the most-talked about entertainer of the past month, owing to her classy conduct (or rather her tormentors' behavior) on Celebrity Big Brother? Or how Sourav Ganguly defied his harshest critics to make a stunning comeback in international cricket, when even most of his ardent supporters wouldn't dare to imagine him in the World Cup team later this year. After his performance against the West Indies recently, this might just be a strong possibility. Another inspiring story is that of Serena Williams in the recently concluded Australian Open tennis championship. Lack of match practice, injuries and a low ranking did not deter this gutsy woman from thinking big, believing in herself when almost no one did. Did you see her thrashing of Maria Sharapova 6-1, 6-2 in the finals? I wish I had!

Here's some of the advice I used when I felt down and out:

Talk to your parents. They sure believe that you are no loser in life. You are unique and you are special.

Talk to a close friend. Most good friends like to play the intent listener and help in some way.

Take pride in your past successes and draw inspiration from them. You can do it!

Read inspiring stories and biographies.

Believe that it is never too late for anything.

Try not to compare yourself with others around you. You don't know their real story.

Enjoy practicing your hobby.

Remember you'll truly appreciate the 'good' only if you experience the 'bad'. There's probably something you can learn from your hardships.

And however philosophical it might sound, finally, there is no one thing that is cosmically significant in the larger scheme of things. Just move on!