Life is good series: Life is good...sometimes

by Rosie Newhouse Hill

Life. A different daily experience for everyone yet we are all expected to relish in constant inspiration as we are force-fed quotes that leave no breathing space for inevitable failure before we are dragged down the bumpy road we call life. ‘Life is good’, a prime example of how we are taught to change our thinking to see the good always, but sometimes we don't have to see the good. Sometimes it's healthier not too.

I recently started college, here at Barton Peveril, and faced the challenge of dropping one subject for a new one. A curve ball I hadn't anticipated, and quite frankly didn't have the headspace to manage, yet it is frequently experienced by sixth formers. The toll of coping with anxiety-inducing change in this new environment was already weighing heavy and the decision of a subject move only yanked the knot in my stomach tighter. Would this be the right decision? Would I enjoy the subject? Would I be able to catch up whilst maintaining a good level of work in my other subjects? Would I regret the move? I had no idea of any answer to any question, so I had to be brave because letting the decision sit on my shoulders any longer would only break my back - and we couldn't afford time for that so early into first year!

Fast forward a couple of days and the decision was made, my timetable changed and I had my first lesson. I loved it. Life was good again. My point being that we can only appreciate the good when we recognise the bad. When we acknowledge the difficulties that we have to overcome. Staying positive all the time is just as large a weight as upholding pessimism therefore we must strive for a balance. If everything was good all the time we would have no appreciation, no strength and no motivation. We need experience to inspire our lives, not strangling positivity in the form of quotes that categorise our struggle and invalidate our feelings. So yes you can read the quote, but take it with a pinch of salt, feel what you are feeling and do it your own way.

We must see the bad so that we aren't blind to the good.