Last weekend, I had a terrifying experience which lasted less than 5 minutes but was enough to remind me of how precious and important life is; and though we sometimes tend to take it for granted that we are alive and in good health, truth is life is so fragile and should be cherished.
I was on my way home on Saturday afternoon after running one or two errands when a man who pretended to be jogging walked passed me, then aggressively came towards me and robbed me of my hand bag and threatened to stab me if I tried to fight him. All this happened within seconds, but the shock of having seen how close I was to being stabbed and even lose my life is still latched on my mind as I’m writing this. There were a number of important items in that bag and quite a large sum of money too. Part of me was enraged and wanted to fight this aggression, but part of me thought: “Wait a minute! Is there anything in that bag that’s worth my life? Should I chase after things I can replace at the risk of losing my life or should I focus on what’s more important right now which is taking myself to a place of safety?
Though some of those items in my bag had sentimental value to me, I had to come to a place of realizing that ultimately my life is worth more than all that. It hurts to feel like you’ve lost a battle, that someone can just come out of nowhere, and feel entitled to things you worked so hard for, or you obtained as a special gift from someone you love. I felt violated and wanted to act in anger, but in that instant I had no doubt that the choice I needed to make was to save my life.
How many times have we chased after things of no real lasting value to the detriment of our own lives or well-being? It may not be a situation like the one I found myself in where the danger was eminent, but don’t we sometimes actively or passively opt for a lifestyle that slowly eats away at our health? Like a work routine that makes no room for rest, as long as we achieve fame and accumulate wealth, or a sedentary lifestyle in which we’re okay with not exercising or challenging our minds, or maybe an eating habit we’ve embraced that is reducing the quality of our health.
No matter how big your dream is, know that a healthy life is the No 1 asset you’ve got in achieving that dream. Take a moment to look at your life and if maintaining a well-balanced lifestyle and staying in good health whether it be mentally, emotionally or physically are not a priority for you, it’s high time to make adjustments. Because if given a chance, you can start over with a career, business, relationship etc, but life itself, you can never replace. So treat yourself well, if you need to make a decision to let go of certain things or relationships that are toxic, do so! Your life matters more than anything.
If you’re going through difficult moments where you’re wondering what’s the value of life and you’re at the brink of giving up or even worse, taking your own life, click on the pop-up banner below. We believe there is a future for you and we would like to share a message of hope with you. Don’t give up!