Adversity causes some people to break; and others to break records.

Adversity is just a test..!!

Adversity according to oxford dictionary is a difficult or an unpleasant situation and as the title suggests it breaks down some people entirely while for some others, it sets new standards of success. APJ Abdul Kalam stands as its best example. Since childhood, he was always surrounded with adversity of different kinds; whether it be lack of  financial  resources or the mental support, he always fought his way and broke records by being an excellent scientist, a prolific writer, an eminent philosopher and definitely the ‘First man of the nation’.

Rudyard Kipling in his poem ‘If’ states,

“If you can meet with Triumph and Disaster

And treat those two impostors just the same

--- you’ll be a man, my son!”

M.K.Gandhi, Pt.Jawahar Lal Nehru, Dr. Rajendra Prasad are those names who abided by the above lines. They were not the ones who wasted their time lamenting over their failures nor did they get too enthusiased on their success. They were the jewels who remained the same throughout. Adversity spares no body and it may sound weird but it is so true, that it is very important to have adverse conditions in life, else one could never understand the true worth of happiness. Adversity teaches us how to fight the hard times with a smile and shine like a star-- like a real hero.

There was a story about two brothers born in the same situation but with an entirely different outlook towards life. Let me start by introducing their drunkard father who used to spend all his income on vices like drinks, drugs etc. Not to forget, he used to beat his innocent wife for literally ‘no reason at all’. Moreover, his attitude towards his children was horrifying: -- something which sent a shiver down the spine. His two sons suffered a lot in that adversity in the same manner but their attitude towards the adverse conditions made a big difference. The elder son chose to be an officer of high rank by educating himself properly and trying his best not to be like his father because he was well aware what actually “being like his father” meant to his family. He had the concept that those adverse conditions had taught him never to do things his father was habituated to while the younger one became a spoilt brat with the concept that his childhood upbringing was to blame. He learnt all this from his own father, from those adverse conditions. Such was the difference between the two souls sharing common fathers and definitely common adversities. The same situation molded the two children in two completely different ways.

Emphasizing on the real life now, I would like to share an experience which provoked me to write the article on a subject like ‘Adversity’. I got to know about one of my seniors who faced an immense adverse condition but conquered it with surprisingly great results. Just a day before his ISC Board Mathematics Examination, he lost his mother and was disturbed to the brim. Still he appeared in the examination and not only did he get 100/100 in mathematics but also topped the institution and made his mother feel proud spiritually. The irreplaceable loss filled in him that will power which his mother always longed for him. This extremely inspiring incident of my life reminds me about the famous quote by Shakespeare,

“Sweet are the uses of adversity; 

which like a toad, ugly and venomous

wears yet a precious jewel on his head.”

used effectively in his play ‘As You like It’. The quote holds true in real sense.