Mad World

How I wish I could see the world through my daughter's eyes. I used to view the world like her, bright and beautiful. While I was growing up, my Mom tried her best to shelter me from every pain, every hint of negative emotion, every problem, every harm imaginable. I lived a comfortable and happy life. I trusted and loved people with all my heart. I thought the world out there will give me back every genuine smile, every good deed and every sincere intention. I was dead wrong. The cloak of innocence I used to wear gradually disintegrated and exposed me to the harshness of the real world. Reality bites. I met people along the way, lots of them. Some were there for a while, to teach me a lesson or two. Some stayed longer and made sure I realized my true worth before they left. Some stayed and never left. The latter batch, I call my beloved friends. All of them made me wiser, stronger and less vulnerable. Through them, I realized that you don't need to follow anyone's rules. You have to create your own, fit them into your life as needed, and abide by them. Right and wrong are subjective. You draw the line in everything. You need to know when to fight and when to give up. You need to know when to stay and when to leave. You need to know your worth so that you won't settle for anything less. They taught me to love myself and not to depend on anyone for my happiness. They taught me to do what I think is right. They taught me that in every decision I make, I should choose the option that will make me happy and at peace. They taught me to do the best in everything so that I won't have any regrets. They taught me to be wary of everyone I meet at all times. Because the world is full of crazy, unreliable, manipulative and unpredictable people who can abuse me. Of course there are a number of genuine and caring ones too (please count me in :-)). They taught me that faith is the anecdote to every harm, every doubt, every sorrow, every fear. They humbled me, reminded me that I'm human and capable of making mistakes. They taught me not to count the number of times I fell. The number of times I stood up was what really mattered. They taught me that whatever happens, LIFE GOES ON. I would like to thank these people for coming into my life. Life would have been so silent, simple and boring without you. I'd rather have my world rocked, turned upside down and made extremely complicated and exciting. Can't wait to meet the next one. ;-) Bring in some noise!