When You Stop Fighting, You Stop Living
“Nothing good ever comes easy.” “No pain, no gain.” “What doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.” Cliché iterations of this motivational message can be found over ombre backgrounds on Pinterest and probably one too many t-shirts. But the version that has resonated most with me is my mom’s all-time favorite quote, “Failure is the pillar of success”. This was her go-to line to comfort and console me each time I fell short of my goals growing up. I’d hear it after auditions gone wrong, failed tryouts, disappointing test scores, and broken friend groups. It took me longer than I’d like to admit before I finally understood that my every setback was an opportunity for a critical lesson, providing me with the foundation to grow and improve. I wonder who I would be now, if not for the mistakes I made and the subconscious insights I picked up along the way. Which raises the question, to what extent does our response to adversity reveal inner truths about our identity? We all fight our own t...