Ajay: Hi! I heard the news and thought Ill check on you. How are you?
Friend: Hit by quite a curveball. I fear losses of this kind could be the end of the business I have built painstakingly over the years.
Ajay: Cmon! You are a spirited entrepreneur.
Friend: I dont know Ajay. This pain makes me so weak. I hate the idea of being so vulnerable.
Ajay: Pain doesnt make you vulnerable, it makes you human. It means you havent gone numb, that you still care for things, that your life is meaningful. If you dont feel pain, it means you have been simply existing and not really living life in its full sense.
Friend: Maybe. But to go through this phase is tough.
Ajay: I know. Trust me, we all have been there. But imagine if it was a physical pain, say a headache. What would you have done?
Friend: Take medication to cure it, avoid triggers in the future
Ajay: Exactly. When you feel pain, you see theres a problem and give attention to it. You find ways to overcome it and take steps to avoid it in the future. The same applies here too. Pain is not an indication that its time to give up. Pain means you value things, you sense the loss. With the right approach and attitude, pain lets you grow stronger.
Friend: I guess you are right. Thanks Ajay, I feel so much better.
Ajay: Life might not always be hunky-dory my friend. Afterall remember what Nietzsche said, to live is to suffer, to survive is to find meaning in suffering. Lets keep pursuing that meaning and take the rest in stride.
