Conflicts... The Seasoning of Life

It’s been a while I wrote from my thoughts. Many things have been happening and I have not been able to gather my thoughts.

Until yesterday.

I went on Facebook to see what was going on. It had been a while I went on there and I needed to catch up with the virtual world which my ‘friends’ and pages constitute. There, I saw the beginnings of what I thought was a good story and so I clicked on ‘Read More’ and read the most disappointing story I have ever read in a while. Not only was it short, but there was also something missing in the story for me to call it a good one.

At first, I couldn't pinpoint the missing piece. It had a happy ending, and God knows I love happy endings. It had an adult female as one of the characters, and being an adult female, I should be able to relate to this character. Maybe I did, but the connection was obviously not good enough for me to see the story as good.

It was also romantically inclined, and for those who know me, I am a die-hard romantic, but the romance still didn’t make it appear as a good story to me. Then I realized what was wrong with the story; it was too smooth and rosy. It lacked some conflict.

Discovering the reason I felt it was disappointing, I learnt two things;

• I have changed as a person

• There is a need for conflict in a story, any story, for it to be called ‘good’

I will share briefly about the first point, then talk more on the second.

I used to love everything romantic and ‘sweet’ in a story. I used to be the girl who reads romance novels and skips those parts where there is some complication between the main characters and some other people. I just want the sweetness and nothing more.

I used to be the kind of girl who’d go to see a romantic movie and wonder when the love would be perfect. Never mind that it would be boring if all stories came like that as they would basically have the same storyline of boy meets girl and then they fall in love and the rest is history blah blah blah.

I used to be that kind of person.

But here I am getting disappointed at what I considered a sugary story. Recently, I go for action movies and romantic ones, no longer just the romantic movies. I was definitely changed, or at least I am changing.

On the second point, this you can agree with me is true. I mean what will be important or interesting about a story if there was no hurdle to jump over? What would make me want to read about the love story of Mr A and Miss B if there was nothing against their love? Why would I see the success of some guy as truly successful if he had nothing to overcome before achieving the feat?

Conflicts are what make good stories good. Conflicts are what makes inspirational stories inspiring. Conflicts are what make motivational stories motivating. Without conflicts, our lives would be dull.

I’m sure you get where I am going with all these talks on conflicts.

Pixabay

When conflicts arise in your life, don’t complain. Instead, look for a way to resolve it. Look for a way to overcome it and be known as a victor. That is what will write your name in the sands of time. That is what will make people pay attention when your name is mentioned. Your name will only make meaning to people when mentioned alongside a conflict.

Going through the Bible,

David is known because he conquered Goliath.

Joseph is known because he was sold into slavery by his brothers.

Daniel is recognized with the lions’ den.

Going through history,

Einstein is known for overcoming the struggle with learning he had as a young lad.

Martin Luther King Jr. is associated with his struggles with trying to make his dreams come true.

You know about Nelson Mandela.

My point? Embrace conflicts and resolve them. Don't see them as unfair treatments.

Your efforts and your success is the ink with which your name will be written in the sands of time. Conflicts make good stories.

Conflicts will make your life story worth telling and listening to.

Go overcome.

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Previously published here