You will live on well

When you decided to quit school, I supported you. Since you no longer seemed to have energy left to endure agony, I thought that you should strengthen stamina and endurance first before going into the battlefield. However I opposed your view when you said that you can exert efforts only when you discover goals and motivation, because it is difficult to regain it all alone in a short period of time. We agonized together, and after all, you made a decision based on the common sense that you will earn the diploma as insurance for the future. Then, you managed to survive such painful and difficult time.

You are not a loser, but rather you are a survivor. You are a victor who has endured pain and suffering. You have not completed yet a race that is widely expected in our society, but nonetheless you have faithfully and successfully completed the plan that you set by yourself. You have exceeded expectations. Entering college is not everything in your life. It is just a competition wherein the winner will only become someone who proves to be slightly taller than rivals in a tight race. In this world, your capability will be eval‎uated only based on test scores because we don’t know characteristics and strengths of each student. However, there are countless hurdles and checkpoints in your life journey, and if you successfully pass these steps one after another, you can become a victor who has lived your own life.

Courage can be created only when there is fear. Courage will grow bigger as small successes build up, and hence trust both in yourself and the world continues to grow. Courage cannot be developed alone. It requires loved ones and support from them. You lacked courage because you did not have someone who “genuinely” loved you, and because you have never experienced such love.

For courage, sincerity and patience are more important factors than talent or IQ, and love is more important than anything else. You have laid foundation for the next step while enduring pain and fears. You have sincerely endured, controlled emotion, and kept your passion, and have been connected with me through heart. Courage will naturally grow once you live a life wherein things will not be separated into winners or losers, or black or white, and instead live through a complicated and diverse reality, and gradually recover a life that you wanted and decided to pursue. Famed American singer Gloria Gainer who sang “I Will Survive” also said,“I feared and was almost scared to death in the beginning, but I have gained courage to continue to live on over the passage of time. I have gained trust that I can live and love my own life. I will live well, just like you.”


tjdrud0306@donga.com