The 1 Thing You Need to Overcome Obstacles

THE 1 THING YOU NEED TO OVERCOME DIFFICULT CHALLENGES

1.

A few days back I went to see a friend. After catching up, we went into his gym which contained one piece of equipment comprising of cement and a rod.

He lied down on the bench and asked me to pass it to him. I tried lifting it off the ground but I couldn’t. 

It looked ‘carryable,’ at first, but when I bent down, I could swear I heard my waist bone give way.

I spent the night there and I tried lifting it the next morning as I’d gotten enough rest at night. I bent down, and this time, like the last time, I couldn’t lift it. But it gave way a little.

On the fourth day, no, I didn’t carry it oo. But it budged. I even lifted it to my ankles. It was massive for me. 

After my sixth attempt, I lifted it. Yes, I did. No lies here. I carried it up to my chest before letting it thunder to the ground.

2.

I remember when the Ebola virus first hit. 

People were so scared of losing their lives and would go to every length to find a means of prevention or a cure. On hearing that salt was a preventive measure to the Ebola virus, see as people in my community- and surely many other communities- came out to fight the deadly virus. 

People were just buying salt and drinking, bathing, washing, brushing, and even spraying as an insecticide. 

One very rich man in my area even bought one bag of salt, as expensive as it became overnight, and poured it into the community well and woke everyone up to go use the water to bath.

Recently, it was the COVID-19 virus that hit. Everyone was panicking. Some tried to conceal their fear, but the nation, and indeed the whole world was in chaos. 

There were lockdowns everywhere. 

Fast forward to a couple of months after the pandemic hit. People got tired of everything. Skeptics increased. Those who doubted if the disease even existed now confirmed their belief that it didn’t. Others were just frustrated with staying at home.

More than anything, people got comfortable with the situation they unwillingly found themselves in. 

As much as no one wanted it, even feared it in the beginning, people found a way to cope with the new situation. Face masks and social distancing became everyday things. Even my uncle refused to shake me. Hmm.

3. 

Last week I witnessed the most shocking event.

 Even at the mouth of death, you could learn a thing or two. 

I sat across a cat. We were discussing how our weekend would unfold. She was telling me of the ‘new catch’ she had made when she stopped mid-sentence and began running as if she was a rat being closed down by a cat.

I looked up to see my new dog chasing after her, and with instinct kicking in, the dog did not even think that we were friends. 

I think I now know how ‘cats and dogs’ came about.

The cat’s pace was no match for the dog’s, and after a few yards, the dog was almost unto her. 

There was a mid-wide rift right before the cat. 

The white cat tried to jump over and across but whether it was out of fear or something else, she couldn’t jump over the fence.

The dog sensed it would get to the cat in no time since there was no escape route.

 The dog slowed, relaxing a bit. He was always cautioned to never rush or play with his food. The dog turned and looked at me, then smiled. He took my shouts as an encouragement to finish off the cat who had been desperately trying to use the little time the dog’s relaxation had bought her.

The cat was praying in her heart. She knew this could be her last: her last breath, her last prayer… her last jump.

 And then it hit her. 

Jump! 

She mustered all the power and pace she could. And then she jumped. She crossed over the ditch in an acrobatic effort that left both the dog and me with our mouths wide open. 

You can believe that I witnessed this or not, it’s up to you, but I’ve told you my own.

The dog turned to look at me. I was relieved I didn’t lose my cat but I frowned at the dog, asking why he didn’t finish her off. His reply got me thinking. He said, 

“Because she gave one more try.” 

Again, you can choose to believe my story. Okay, you have to believe it because it was in my backyard. Now it’s left for you to apply the principles you have learned.

∆

Like the weight I was trying to lift, like the rift my friend was trying to jump over, like the pandemic that threw the whole world out of balance, they are all challenges.

 I didn’t find it easy to lift the weight off the ground the first time. I couldn’t do it the second up to the fifth time.

During COVID-19 people were scared. But as soon as they got ‘familiar’ with it, no one feared it anymore. Some didn’t even believe it to be real. It’s the same with your fear. It may not even be real. But if it is, then face it. Familiarize yourself with it. Lift it every day and soon you’ll overcome it without as much effort as it was in the first few attempts.

My friend tried jumping and after several attempts, finally did it. You first feared the virus, but with time you embraced your situation and here you are, joyfully reading this. If I’d given up after the first few attempts, I wouldn’t have been proudly smiling, writing this.

If you want to overcome a challenge or fear, you have to face it.

It’s normal to feel scared or uncomfortable with a new, especially dangerous, challenge such as a global pandemic, or jumping over a hurdle, or trying to lift the weight off the ground- whatever that may mean to you. 

When you are faced with challenges, don’t you dare give up! Remember that even though practice doesn’t necessarily make you perfect, it makes surmounting your obstacles easier. You die when you give up, but with patience and persistence, you will find a way to stay alive. 

Keep going. Keep practicing. Keep pushing. Keep surviving.

Just don’t give up.

PS: Never take your eyes off your goals as the dog did. You'll end up not hitting them.