If I Could Have My Way

If I Could Have My Way

If I could have my way, I’d be rich
I wouldn’t need to work anymore,
I’d have people working for me,
I’d be comfortable,
I’d buy the most beautiful house,
I’d travel to the most beautiful places.

But if I could have my way,
I wouldn’t know how it is to be poor,
I wouldn’t have as much compassion
for those who hunger,
for those who work hard,
for those who couldn’t even find
some roof above their heads
when the rain starts to pour.

If I could have my way,
I wouldn’t know how it is to be hurt,
I’d protect my heart all the way,
and give it to no one else.
I wouldn’t be vulnerable,
I wouldn’t cry,
I wouldn’t have sleepless nights
when my heart is broken
and my soul torn apart.

But if I could have my way,
I wouldn’t know how to suffer,
I wouldn’t know how to grieve
with those who mourn.
I would have lived a painless life,
but I would have lived empty
and without love.
I would have never known
how to comfort those who are broken.
I would never known
how to be comforted and healed.

There are many times in our lives, when we wonder what could happen, if we could have our way. Maybe some of us would wish never to grow up anymore and to be eternally young. We’d like to stay as innocent and beautiful children who have no worries to think about. Some of us wouldn’t want to get sick. We’d prefer to be always healthy and strong, never needing anyone to help us when we’re weak.

If we could have our way, we’d have so many things in our favour, but we’d also lose a lot of things that are given us in our present situation.

Nobody wants to experience hunger, to get sick, to grow old or to be broken. These are not things we would naturally seek. These are after all, the result of our parents’ sin when they fell from paradise long ago.

But God, in His wisdom, instead of merely eradicating such things, have chosen to bring even something better out of them.

God would not allow such great sufferings without being able to replace them with far greater joys!

Yes, it is good to remain as an innocent child. It is good to be exempt from pain. It is good never to have experienced sickness or death.

But there is wisdom in an older person that a child could never have. There is greater compassion in one who knew pain. There is a deeper happiness in one who got healed, and in one who is brought back to life.

Light that is untouched by darkness is good. But a Light that can be brought forth out of much darkness is a Light that could never be extinguished by any night, for in that Light, no evil could ever prevail.

“No longer is there death that cannot bring life, pain that cannot generate fullness, sadness that we cannot convert into profound joy.” – Surviving Depression

Check Jocelyn's books:

"Of Waves and Butterflies: Poems on Grief", "Mend My Broken Heart", "Questions to God", "To Love an Invisible God", "Defending My Catholic Faith", and more - click here.

(You may freely quote excerpts from this website as long as due credit is given to author Jocelyn Soriano and the website itakeoffthemask.com)