As I was chilling out the other day playing a game of Solitaire on my phone, having just read Helen Keller’s ‘The Story of my Life,’ the thought came to me that it’s not about the cards you’re dealt, but how you play them that matters.
“The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched – they must be felt with the heart. Helen Keller
In life the cards you get are the cards you play. Each of us is dealt a hand when we come into the world. Some will get a great hand: success every step of the way, happy family life, successful in business, healthy body and bank account, and very few bad or difficult days. Others may be born into poverty, a broken family, child abuse, and nothing ever goes right for them. They have been dealt a bad hand.
The important thing is that it does no good to complain about what you’ve been given or be certain that they will determine your outcome.
Many people think that being born into money or prestige will guarantee their happiness. Nothing could be farther from the truth. Others will use the hand they’ve been dealt as a crutch for why they don’t succeed.
The quote I started this article with really shows Helen Keller’s attitude. Instead of allowing what she had lost to be a determining factor on her life’s journey, instead she chose to make the most of what she had, and use it to the best advantage possible.
“We are all dealt a hand and we have to decide how to play it.” Voltaire
At a young age Helen Keller faced an illness which “closed my eyes and ears and plunged me into the unconsciousness of a new-born baby.”
Nobody in their right mind would choose to go deaf or blind.
“Have you ever been at sea in a dense fog, when it seemed as if a tangible white darkness shut you in, and the great ship, tense and anxious, groped her way toward the shore with plummet and sounding-line, and you waited with beating heart for something to happen? … without compass or sounding-line, and had no way of knowing how near the harbour was. “Light! give me light!” “ Helen Keller
I struggled for some time with my visual impairment. I’m thankful for the fact I still have some vision. I know others aren’t so fortunate. What I know is each of us has to find a way to be optimistic.
I know how difficult this is for many. You have unmanageable trials and hardships. I know that you’ve been dealt some tough cards. Since you can’t change those cards, how are you going to play them? Will you blame your cards for your misfortune for most of your life or move forward despite them?
Let Helen Keller be an inspiration to you.
In a book titled aptly named “Optimism” she wrote these words:
“Optimism, then, is a fact within my own heart. But as I look out upon life, my heart meets no contradiction. The outward world justifies my inward universe of good.”
Could anyone, even us visually impaired, deny the importance to us of optimism reading this:
“Once I knew only darkness and stillness. Now I know hope and joy. Once I fretted and beat myself against the wall that shut me in. Now I rejoice in the consciousness that I can think, act and attain heaven. … Can anyone who escaped such captivity, who has felt the thrill and glory of freedom, be a pessimist?”
We all need to be optimistic, no matter are circumstances. People who choose to be optimistic look for the best or most favourable side of a situation. Being optimistic is a good goal to follow in my life. Optimism is the tendency or disposition to expect the best possible outcome.
Let the accomplishments of Helen Keller inspire you to believe in yourself despite your problems or disabilities.
I decided I could not change what happened nor allow it to ruin my life. It has not always been easy, there’s been many obstacles to overcome, never ending, but I remain optimistic as must you.
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