DEMYSTIFYING LIFE: “WHAT IS LIFE?!!!”

Many attempts have been made to determine the perfect definition for life. Some will say it is like a sea, stretching out beyond anyone and cannot be held on to, others will say it is like a market, we come to buy and to sell all that we have bought and then go away; some even claims it is war, you know, looking at the many things we go through in life like battles – survival, love, success, etc. These and many more definitions are being pushed forth as to what life is and life in its malleable self accommodates these definitions, but none of them is adequate to define life in an all-encompassing way. So, what is life then? Or is life going to be a topic we will never fully understand? But do you know life can stop being too much of a mystery to us? I mean we can demystify life. Let us then try out something and see how far we can go with it.

I think in our bid to understand life, we need to change our method of defining it. Let us stop looking at life as an entity on its own but as an engine set in motion by a person, people or a God. Do you know that what we call life today is not independent of the people living? In fact we have attempted to look at life as if it is a system operating independent of people and people are just thrown into it like a pack of lost aimless pawns. But NO! Humans make life what it is.

No matter the sector or section of life you are in, people determine what you see and experience and define as life. For example, if you are a young growing up person, you may see life as wonderful if SOMEONE or PEOPLE provide for you and you get all you need as and when due. An elderly man once said, “When I was young, I used to wonder why people trek and not go about in cars as I didn’t believe that there can be a family without one or two cars.” If you are a young man that had a hard time growing up because you did not have SOMEONE or PEOPLE or PARENTS who is rich and gives you everything on a platter of gold, you may see life as a battle. If you are a successful business man that PEOPLE patronize a lot, you may see life as beautiful. And if as a business person you have to do more to convince PEOPLE to patronize you, you may see life as a competition. So, what we call life is actually what we see and experience around us and that is determined mainly by the people we interact with as we live on. Even the uncertainty of life is mainly caused by the unexpected behavior of someone or people or a turn of events which is either caused by someone or some persons or related to someone or some persons. Knowing this? How do we then ply through life with ease?

Since life is a picture imprinted on our hearts based on how we view it, then we get to demystify it by just checking how we see it. You know all the positive confession things just explain this. Okay, here is it. Do you know that we see more from our mind and heart than from our eyes? Do you know that we hear more from our thoughts than from a loud speaker? That is why it is possible to be lonely while within a crowd and it also explains why we pick the aspect of a discussion that we pick. When some pastors are about to start their sermon they will pray that “Lord let it meet us AT THE POINT OF OUR NEEDS.” For example, if I am in debt, what will always catch my attention or be of maximum interest to me will be how to make money quick or how to get your debtors to forgive your debts. In fact this essay may not really interest someone who sees no reason to want to understand life. So we pick things based on what we have on our minds and that is determined by what we experience from people around us. An African adage even says, “It is the issue that bothers us the most that is the most frequent in our discussions.” So in essence, we see life in our minds and how we see life determines our response to it.

Our response here determines a lot in what we experience. Now, if someone hates you and you hate back, you cannot expect good. So if someone like that does you evil, do not say life is wicked. But if someone hates you and you choose to love the person, do you know that more often than not you will be getting positives from such a person? In fact you may sooner or later turn things around to your benefit. Do you know if you are a fire-for-fire kind of temperamental person you will more often than not turn good moments to a bad one for yourself? Do you know that when you are in the most difficult of situations, you will go through it easier and faster if you keep your mind positive and shun out as much as possible self pity? Do you also know that if you keep your mind positive while going for a job interview, you will approach it with more confidence and will more often than not get it? Do you know that if you are a business person and your colleague seems to be making more sales than you, with the right attitude you can up your own market and sales and even get that counterpart to be a partner? See, life is what we make of it and what we make of it is a consequence of what we keep in our minds. Then the big question will be WHAT OCCUPIES OUR MINDS? If you are always thinking of making it big through short-cuts you may sooner or later just be a fraudster or always not make it at all. If your mind is occupied by the right stuffs then you are 80% going to have a good life. Do you know that the unconscious director of our paths and life is our minds?

So guys, while life is a big topic to be defined in a simple sentence, it may just suffice us to know that the best definition for life can be given by no other person but you. While what we see of it is a factor of what we experience with other people, we hold a big stake in determining what we experience with those people. Our tool or should I say the engine room is our minds and hearts when they are wrong, we suffer; when they are right, we enjoy.