It's Not About How You Start

Last week, I found myself thinking: judging and condemning people who by all standards of morality have not done the right thing; people who have not lived the right way and yet by some stretch of unimaginable luck happened to land on their feet, possessing all the things we all wish for- happy homes, comfortable lives, true love, great financial standing etc. 

My first instinct was to point out all the wrongdoings of the past: lies, stealing, projection of untrue images and standards etc. However, as I thought long and hard about it, I got to realize I was wrong to even consider thinking that way.

Life is a race; not a sprint, but a marathon. So many of us believe if we start strong, we will finish strong. And of course many times we do. We stick to the narrow lonely road many people are not keen to endure and we face every trial possible on our way to the top. This makes us believe we have the official effrontery to judge and look down on those who haven’t always done the right thing. 

We tend to believe that they are not as deserving as we are; while we were busy working hard, they were busy wasting time. So imagine the shock and surprise that befall us when we see them standing at the finish line ahead of us, lifting trophies we believe ought to be ours. If we have always done the right thing, then we should be the first to shine, while those people are left to experience theatrical internal condemnations of their choices. I have come to learn that in life it’s not about how you start but how you finish.

So many of us start strong, yet lose steam along the way in this race called life. Some of us start off by walking lackadaisically, and towards the end, we start to pick up speed, while some of us are caught up with how the other players are running, we often forget to run our own race. Those who start strong and stick to the right side of the tracks all through the race believe that they are better off than anyone else, and that can be seen in their pious questioning glances. 

The sad truth however is that time and chance happens to all things and everyone. It is not about how people start out in life, but who they eventually become. We should not hold people ransom for their past choices or wrongdoings. Afterall, no one reading this can claim to be the exact same person he or she was five or ten years ago. That seemingly undeserving individuals crossed the finish line before you is not a cruel twist of fate you should obsess over. It is evidence that there are different paths that can lead to the same destination, and at the last minute, seemingly undeserving individuals can have epiphanies that cause them to change lanes, move faster, or even work harder.

Do not think that because a person or certain individuals started off on a wrong path, they are undeserving of good fortune or happiness. It’s not about how they start off, but who they eventually become. XOXO