I will continue to relive in my mind last Saturday’s Chelsea-Arsenal match not only for providing me with entertainment per excellence, but also for validating what I have long believed to be the top secret to solving problems –refusal to panic.
The Gunners were higgledy-piggledy in the first half, but found their confidence in the second. “We showed great spirit in the way we came out in the second-half 2-1 down with complete desire to go forward,” said coach Arsene Wenger. Underline those words “complete desire” and “go forward.” When a man has the desire and will to take action in even a disillusioning situation, nothing can stop that man.
Life has the tendency of taking each one of us through the school of hard knocks, and it’s how we react that makes all the difference. I’ll never forget the first months of my working life when I used to struggle with rent.
My landlord had insisted on being paid three months in advance and it was not easy. One day, I got a text message from him that had a touch of finality: “Dennis, your rent was due a month ago and you have been all along making pseudo promises to pay. Now I am sick of them. You pay this Friday or vacate my premises before that date. No more excuses!”
It was Tuesday, oh, how was I going to raise close to a million shillings in two days considering how hard-up as I was? Truth to tell, I was on the verge of throwing a pity-party as I was wont to do in tight situations. But this time I dared to be different. It helped that I had just read a line from the Bible that said God has not given us a spirit of fear but of power and a sound mind.
I hate borrowing money, but I called up someone and asked for a loan. He gave me the money, leaving me amazed at how easy it all was. That’s the day I learned never to panic no matter the situation. And watching Arsenal come twice from behind to slay the giant in an away match reminded me of the day I outwitted the landlord’s from throwing me out.
That was the day I became the assassin that has since been assassinating all my fears with the kind of dexterity with which Van Persie assassinated Chelsea defenders. The day I became an optimist!
 |
| refuse to panic, play on |
Life has the tendency of taking each one of us through the school of hard knocks, and it’s how we react that makes all the difference. I’ll never forget the first months of my working life when I used to struggle with rent.
My landlord had insisted on being paid three months in advance and it was not easy. One day, I got a text message from him that had a touch of finality: “Dennis, your rent was due a month ago and you have been all along making pseudo promises to pay. Now I am sick of them. You pay this Friday or vacate my premises before that date. No more excuses!”
It was Tuesday, oh, how was I going to raise close to a million shillings in two days considering how hard-up as I was? Truth to tell, I was on the verge of throwing a pity-party as I was wont to do in tight situations. But this time I dared to be different. It helped that I had just read a line from the Bible that said God has not given us a spirit of fear but of power and a sound mind.
I hate borrowing money, but I called up someone and asked for a loan. He gave me the money, leaving me amazed at how easy it all was. That’s the day I learned never to panic no matter the situation. And watching Arsenal come twice from behind to slay the giant in an away match reminded me of the day I outwitted the landlord’s from throwing me out.
That was the day I became the assassin that has since been assassinating all my fears with the kind of dexterity with which Van Persie assassinated Chelsea defenders. The day I became an optimist!
No comments:
Post a Comment