Basic HTML Version
8 I The Best Online Education System in the world
LIVING ON THE EDGE
Kathlyn Q. Barrozo
Class of 1991, University of Santo Tomas
B.S. Medical Technology
In the hustle and bustle of everyday living, I often find myself wondering if I can ever take a breather
sometimes. I often feel like a hamster, running around in a wheel inside a cage, not knowing where the wheel
ends. At least the hamster knows when to get off. In my case, the wheel spinning around is much too exciting
to leave….yet.
But looking at those people whose lives look so simple and uncomplicated, I am often beset with envy. No,
not the destructive type. The type that makes you wish you could also take it easy like them. To lie around in
perpetual inactivity, not having worrisome thoughts and heavy concerns. I tell myself often, WOW! I’d like
that!
But come to think of it, maybe those very people I envy might have bigger problems than I do. They could have
a sick family member, no means to find gainful employment, or have been cast out from their own families.
It is then that I become thankful. I do face many problems in my day-to-day life and work, but at least I am still
able to get a chance to prove my worth. This is not to say that people without worries are to be looked down
on. Actually, they should be prayed for, because they too have their troubles. They too have their problems.
We can not declare that our problems are bigger than everybody else’s. That is most unfair. The magnitudes of
the problems we face are always commensurate to our capacity to carry them. Others may seem to have it
easy on life, but they too have their own loads. Maybe, they just know how to carry theirs better than we do.
In the essence of daily living, we must continue to believe we can always do better than we’ve already done.
We must not think that one adversity we’ve surpassed will be the end of all adversities. In fact, if you observe
how life deals you bad cards, you would notice that you often get too many bad cards than good ones. Then,
you begin to cry FOUL! NO FAIR!
But the game of life is not to be played that way. We must learn to hold bad cards as well as good ones. If we
get good cards, we should be thankful. But real players know how to play even their bad cards. Oftentimes, all
it takes is a bit of concentration and hard work. Other players on the table might have worse cards than you
have.
In sum, never say that a fight is over till it’s over. You may never know how your luck will turn out to be. If you
give up too early, you might miss the best parts.
Questions for Discussion:
1. How does the writer feel about life in general?
2. What do you think is probably the writer’s profession?
3. Which profession, in your opinion, is the most challenging? Why?
4. Which profession is the least challenging? Why?
5. Do you ever feel that life is unfair? Support your answer.