I am definitely the type of person that likes to know what comes next. When planning for a vacation, I write up a packing list weeks in advance and plan out every little thing I’m going to do. When something new or exciting is coming, I research everything about it so I know exactly what to expect. I don’t like to leave things up to chance and I don’t like to be surprised. If I can, I want to know exactly what to expect when it comes to pretty much everything.

Unfortunately, that’s just not how life works. I am often surprised by what life throws at me. Sometimes I get good surprises, and sometimes I get ones that break my heart. But guess what? That’s ok! This life is a test and if we knew exactly what to expect all the time, then we wouldn’t be challenged to become better because we could plan for exactly what comes next. The real test of someone’s character is how they react when they are given an unanticipated trial. That is when all the planning you’ve done becomes useless and you have to rely on things you have learned from your past and what you have with you in your present. Yes, life can be hard, but Cicero advises that we must, “live as brave men; and if fortune is adverse, front its blows with brave hearts.”

Yes, it is more than okay to plan and to research about what is coming next. But we also have to remember that life often doesn’t go according to plan and if it doesn’t, then we must be brave and do our best amidst our trials. It is ok to not know what to expect, because that is when you will learn the most.

Yours truly,

Publius