On of my favourite books is by Ryan Holiday and it is called “The Obstacle is the Way”, an exploration of stoic philosophy through the lens of the famous quote by Marcus Aurelius:

Our actions may be impeded . . . but there can be no impeding our intentions or dispositions. Because we can accommodate and adapt. The mind adapts and converts to its own purposes the obstacle to our acting. The impediment to action advances action. What stands in the way becomes the way.

In an essence, obstacles are nothing more than an opportunity to “practice some virtue: patience, courage, humility, resourcefulness, reason justice, and creativity.”

This is what I learned when exactly one year ago, on May 2nd 2021, I was in an accident that resulted in a fractured shoulder, lots of pain, bruises, a loss of my identity, a mild depression and a lot of learning.

It took me a while to understand that things happen for you and not to you…

It took an accident for me to understand that your health is not really under your control..

It took physical pain for me to stop and take a break…

It took a broken bone to rebuild myself…

It took some time off to understand all I was…

It took a mild depression to love myself even more…

I have not regained full mobility on my left shoulder, but I gained respect and love for my body for it’s amazing capability to heal and rebuild itself….

I’m not physically where I was when this happened exactly one year ago… but mentally and spiritually I have grown drastically.

I remember praying so that the day would come when I’d understand what the lesson was with all that pain, today I know and I celebrate this accident with a big smile and lots of love towards my broken bone.

Cheers to obstacles that become stepping stones on your path!!!

#grateful