In the face of recent adversity in my life, a time things most certainly did not go as I’d hoped they would, I’ve had time to reflect on what it means to experience the unexpected for the worst. The kind supporting words that friends have given me have included things along the lines of: “This happened so something better can come in the future.” And this positivity has boosted my morale and made me look forward to the future and the unknown. We have no idea what life holds for us down the road, and even if you believe that we are in control of our destiny, I think sometimes sh*t just happens, and from there, we have a decision to make about how we react and how we will move forward. What I’ve learned is that unexpected setbacks are one of the greatest learning experiences we can have.

And we will all have these learning experiences at one time or another. These will not look the same for everyone, but the important thing is realizing that there is always something to learn. Events that give us pause are vital to growing and learning because we are forced to consider possibilities we might not have previously considered now that things aren't going the way we had planned for them to go.

Being able to pick ourselves up by our bootstraps is a core element of the human experience. Although we presently have different debacles than those our ancestors dealt with, we are living similar lives to those of people hundreds of years ago. We still experience the same human emotions and deal with complications to the lives we expect to live.

The things that are consistent with all disappointments are the initial feelings of devastation and despair, which are soon followed by a sense of empowerment often driven by the loving support of family and friends. And how lucky we are to experience these three things, because it means we are alive and able to alter our course of life. It’s disappointing to have things not go as planned or to lose something, but life works in mysterious ways.

In these moments of anguish we realize that we are not entitled to anything. And this means we’re more on our toes and ready to act in response -- poised, and ready to make the most of bad situations. We are more in control when we don't expect anything of others than we would be if we thought things could be 100 percent guaranteed.

Nothing is ever for certain. And this unpredictability can be daunting, or it can be invigorating. You can make changes if you aren’t happy.

The support I’ve received and love I’ve felt in this difficult and uncertain time has convinced me how lucky I am. Yes, I’ve hit a bump in the road, but having faith that something will work out or that potentially something even better could come along makes it all worth it.