Sometimes, life just happens. There are things we cannot control and will never be able to control. Just the other day, one of my close friends was getting ready to leave for class and all of a sudden he realized he had a flat tire. These moments are the moments that challenge our patience and our problem solving skills. It's very easy to stomp our feet and scream, "F**k the world!" However, this reaction is not what builds character. What defines somebody is the inner strength to persevere through any and all obstacles.

We all hit speed bumps even when we don't see them coming. The crazy thing is that we usually never see them coming. Sometimes life just gets in the way of our plans. We all dream that our journey will be like an early morning autumn drive down the coast line with the wind in our hair, the sunrise slowly approaching off the horizon, and the sound of the birds flying so gracefully above the road we are on. Nevertheless, we all know that majority of the time this never happens. Majority of the time, we depart expecting a graceful drive, although what we are faced with is quite the opposite. We can be faced with a complex road with twists and turns around every corner or speed bumps placed so perfectly that as soon as we gain enough speed and think that we have made it, we hit a bump in the road and are forced to reduce speed and reevaluate what is happening.

Life getting in the way comes in many shapes and sizes. It can be something as small as getting a flat tire on the way to work, or it can be larger than we ever expected. We can't predict life and we certainly can't predict when these things will unfold in our own lives. The ironic thing is that these issues that arrive in our life never arrive alone. As I'm sure everyone knows, when it rains it pours. But, hey, that's just life, isn't it? I'm sure each and every eye that glances over these words can relate in one way or another. These situations happen every second of every day. You never know the next time life will get in the way and you never know when the last time life getting in the way will be. This teaches us to never give up.

When life has got us down, you'll probably beg for this to be the last time. So, you think to yourself, Why me? This teaches us to stand up with more force than that of the force that knocked us down in the first place. So next time you wake up just to realize you slept through your alarm and missed your bus, remember to stay cool and collected and know you will work it out. Next time you think that life has it out just to ruin you, remember that we are all in this together and we will all get through it. Life will never stop pushing our buttons. However, if we were never pushed to the edge, we would never realize just how strong we really are. Sometimes, life just gets in the way -- but, hey, that's life!