I have come to the sudden realization that there is something deeply, innately, and psychologically wrong with me at the center of my core. When it comes to how I live my life and how I will reach success and my goals, If I don’t have to work for it, then I don’t want it; simple as that. In order for me to feel like I have accomplished something, I need to pour my blood, sweat, tears, heart, and soul into it. I can’t plow a field without some blisters and callouses on my hands and to me, the reward means nothing unless I truly worked for it. Easy come, easy go is a saying for a reason, and success is fleeting and temporary without the foundation to back it up. Comfort is a slow death. I prefer pain. If that makes me a masochistic time bomb hell-bent on a destructive spree to reach my goals, then so be it. I’m so sick of stepping on eggshells for the battered chickens that were too far gone to save anyways. Get right or get left and I don’t have the time to cater to weak, rude, toxic, lazy, dramatic, entitled people incapable of taking personal responsibility. Stop bringing people into the next phase of life with you that should have been booted 3 seasons ago.
Speaking of holding onto people from your past, how many of us have people on our social media accounts that we haven’t interacted with in years. I can’t tell you how many people as of late that I have had to remove from my Facebook because the only input I have had from them in years is of a negative interaction or critical comment. I’m not saying you need to ‘like’ everything I do, but I try and accomplish a lot and utilize an ample amount of time to help and aid others, and if the only time I hear from you in a decade is to bash me, then you’re gone. People can despise you and keep you on their accounts to be able to keep up with their hatred of you from afar. But if you aren’t there to cheer and only to boo, either way you are a fan simply by sticking around. Trust me, if I loathe your every existence, you ain’t on my mind. My time is valuable and very limited, so I can’t waste a second on trivial matters like keeping up with the envy, hatred, or greed of others. Know your worth and don’t put up with this either.
You’re out of your motherfucking mind if you think I want to sacrifice my sleep, family time, and general relaxation time to go train and get my ass beat. And then to be disciplined and organized enough to prep for a fight with the proper nutrition that best fuels my body. But I want to be successful more than I want that extra 30 minutes of beauty sleep or that delectable cheeseburger. People want the glory, but not the guts and the sacrifice it takes to reach it. The path to victory is paved with potholes, obstacles, and misdirection along the way, and it is never aesthetically pretty, simple, or easy. If it was, everyone would do it. We are all capable of reaching these levels, but the self-discipline and sacrifice it takes is often too much for most people. Spit in the face of the average, mundane, and mediocre and go ahead and endure the pain needed to triumph.
Now, don’t get me wrong. I am by no means saying you should be in a constant state of agony and suffering in order to appreciate what you have or to hail victorius in the long run. However, you do retain those successes the harder you had to work for it and you respect the attitudes and the hustle of those who have done the same. It would be nice to hit it big on the lottery and never have a care in the world again, but sadly, that is exceptionally unlikely. In fact, there are numerous stories and documentaries on the curse of the lottery and the problems it ensues and the devastation it can cause from stumbling into an exorbitant amount of money so quickly. Many of these people have their lives torn apart and dismantled and not only do they get ruined emotionally, physically, and financially, but many reach an untimely demise as well. Beware of the folly anything that is too good to be true.
The callouses I earn on this bedraggled body make the taste of victory that much sweeter. Even if it wasn’t fighting, I know that personally I could never sit around and expect things to be handed to me. I like to work for what I get and it instills a type of honor and pride within myself that I couldn’t achieve any other way. Sure, I may have to lather myself up with CBD lotions and creams and lay in ice baths while popping ibuprofen, but I will be able to sleep soundly and satisfied with the work I put in. There’s a reason why receiving a new belt rank in Jiu Jitsu is such an exhilarating and accomplished feeling. Those belts are earned, not given, and your fellow peers understand the amount of time, work, and dedication that went into that little piece of fabric wrapped around your waist. I will cry on the mats, I will bleed in the cage, I will spend hours dieting, weight cutting, exercising, and training, and I will treasure every single sacrificing step in this journey. This is a life worth living, and when it comes to an end, I won’t be left wondering if I got the most out of it that I could.