by Iyeke Uwa

“The problem with these daydreams is that life does not hand us a restart button”

“The baby you have is the baby you were destined to have, it was meant to be”. That’s what the adoption agency tells you. I like to think it’s true, but everything else in the world seems so completely random. What if one little thing I said or did made it all fall apart? What if I choose another life for myself or another person? What if I’ve been raised differently? What if, what if, what if?

Many times we find ourselves wishing for a second chance, longing to stop time, start anew or wondering what might have happened if we would have said ‘Yes’ instead of ‘No’. The problem with these daydreams is that life does not hand us a restart button. To win at business or life, adversity has to be encountered, faced, fought and defeated.There is no other way. No options. You either beat it, or it beats you. You win or you lose. Simple, right? No. Never.

It’s never black or white. Never win or lose. Something always bleeds over; Something good or bad, funny or sad and sometimes its a blend of both. Some folks say they’d prefer a life of “oh wells” to “what ifs”. The thing is, live life to the fullest. Let go of the “what ifs”. Don’t lick your wounds; Celebrate them. Scars are a sign that you had competition.

On a final note, your life is a gift,accept it. No matter how messed up or painful it seems to be, some things are gonna work out like they were destined to be.

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Iyeke Uwa loves Jesus plenty, she also loves white chocolates and is addicted to bananas. She tweets from  @dahliadona

30 Days, 30 Voices series is an opportunity for young Nigerians from across the world to share their stories and experiences – creating a meeting point where our common humanity is explored.

Op-ed pieces and contributions are the opinions of the writers only and do not represent the opinions of Y!/YNaija