Transforming Tragedy Into Beauty

Every day, life presents us with numerous challenges. Some are so minute that we overcome them without being actively cognisant that they are even present. Others are so overwhelmingly towering that they break us, consume every ounce of our vitality or exhaust our determination to succeed.

The saying goes,  “life is what we make it”, but how many of us have actually stopped to consider what this really means?

Today, my wife uploaded the photo below to our family WhatsApp group with the following  caption:

 “Ash has started using tiles, destroyed by Hurricane Maria, from inside our home, to crazy-tile our outside step… Transforming tragedy into beauty.”

Much like the faint smell of smoke in a closed room long after the candle has been blown out, those last four words seemed to linger with me. They then became the catalyst that propelled me into the realm of introspection and reflection:

Pain is something that I have become familiar with because on a daily basis, I live it and live with it. In my own life, I have experienced daily pains from Colitis and Sacroiliitis in varying proportions. Over time, I have not only learnt to live with the pain, but to transform pain into motivation. The mantra I have created and upheld is this: “Pain will not run my life”. Like many, there are days when pain is so intense that I have to stop, slow down and alter or postpone my plans.  However, for me, these are simply transient adjustments to allow myself to do whatever I need to be better. For someone looking in, it may seem irrational to partake in activities that will cause me to feel pain or increase the pain I am already feeling. But for me, it is as if I am compelled to do those things because if I don’t, frustration will consume me. You see, pain drives me to prove to myself that I can, irrespective of the odds. Though I must concede that sometimes there is a price to pay for what my wife defines as being stubborn, the mental satisfaction always exceeds it. Because every single time that I have pushed past my physical pain to complete something I set out to do, I have created for myself, an emotionally tangible reminder of my ability to overcome in the face of adversity.

“I live with pain” is what I describe as my wife’s daily battle with Lupus. That dreaded disease that causes her to always experience joint, muscle and other aches and pains, constant fatigue, rashes, vomiting, headaches, sudden and drastic changes in temperature and so much more. And those flares… those unpredictable, vicious, relentless flares that can become so terrifying, they make me forget my own pain. Yet, Lupus has never prevented her from working hard every day to achieve her personal goals of imparting knowledge and helping to make others’ lives better. I may have already asked her over 100 times, “Are you staying home or going to work today?” or “Can you finish working on that tomorrow?” I always ask because I can see and I can hear the pain but more so, I can feel her pain because her pain is my pain. And while it undoubtedly amazes me, I still cannot comprehend how or where she unearths that bounce and that pep in her step and that warm, contagious smile, an hour or two later.

We often allow life’s challenges to break our spirit, and sometimes give up when we have failed. Failure though should be perceived simply as an opportunity to craft greater success. To the student whose hard work has yielded an F, or the farmer whose months of labour has resulted in little gain, or the individual who has sacrificed so much but only gained a broken heart, to the one who has spent so much but is still searching for a cure, and the many others who deal with all sorts of challenges every day, do not allow your challenges to become permanent roadblocks.

I won’t pretend that it is easy, because I have fallen more times than I can remember, and I have been broken more times than I can count, but each time I fall or I break, I remind myself that God placed me on this earth for a purpose, and the fact that I am still alive is reason enough to keep fighting.

So today, tomorrow, next week, and for as long as you have life, work to transform tragedy into beauty. Christian Larson phrased it perfectly, “Believe in yourself and all that you are. Know that there is something inside of you that is GREATER than any obstacle.”

For me, that something is God.

For me, that something is an unwavering spirit.

For me, that something is love.

Find your something today!

Ashley Massicotte ©