On tragedy

Tragedy is an inevitability. There is no escaping it. We in our lives will at some point face it, and it will be terrible; this is simply a fact. Tragedy is just another song that we all must listen to in the grand parade of life. And whilst it would be easy to say, with all the hollowness of a cliché, that "everything will be okay"—I reject that. There will be pain and there will be grief. These are stark realities that must be accepted and endured. No, everything will not be "okay". The sooner we accept that suffering is part and parcel of our existence, the sooner we can learn—not that things will pass with time on their own—but that we are presented with a choice: The choice is quite plainly "what are you going to do about it?" Yes, the inevitability of tragedy is all but certain; however, what you choose to do about facing it is squarely up to you. Now, I do not wish to be mistaken to mean that everything a consequence of pain and hurt is within our power to manipulate and steer, but I do firmly believe that (extenuating circumstances aside) we always have some form of executive control over how we respond to the onslaught. A hallmark of what it means to be human is to be in anguish—but just as human is it to struggle against the tribulations, and therefrom to act with volition counter to them. Tragedy, pain, misery: I accept these and that they will fall upon me. And just the same I acknowledge the role I play—the duty I have—in deciding what I am to do about it.

M.M. — 13-Feb-2015