Sometimes things don’t work out the way we wish they had. In those moments, we feel upset and defeated. We ask why and try to make sense of it. We tell ourselves it’ll be okay and not to worry about it. We bargain with God and plead relentlessly. We try to distract ourselves by pushing down the pain and trying not to focus on it. We do anything to avoid the horribleness of how we feel.

In the short term, this strategy may work. We may successfully ignore our feelings and pretend everything is fine. We may even be able to fool ourselves into believing we’ve gotten rid of the pain we felt. But it’s still there, lying dormant waiting for its chance to come back to life, and when it does, it will be sure to return with a vengeance. 

We need to learn to embrace the pain that comes into our lives instead of running from it. We need to face it head-on and know we are strong enough to move past it. Feel the pain, the hurt, the sadness. Accept it for what it is. And then leave it behind as you move forward.

Don’t try to make sense of it. Don’t try to understand it. Acknowledge it. Embrace it. Absorb it. Trust that everything will work out precisely as it should. Keep pushing forward.