(Camera: Ricoh GX200)A young father full of confidence in his gaze is passing with the pram in which his precious child is resting. Look at the little foot stretching out of the seat, which suggests the radiance of life that could be the reason the young man is so confident of what he may be conjuring up in his mind's eye. Can we call this happiness? Probably yes.
Happiness is considered to be the most essential experience in life. It certainly is. But let's close our eyes and imagine that he will have a lifetime of happiness ahead of him: Can he bear it? Probably not. No single man alive can bear it; it will be hell on earth. Human beings will never find contentment in a lifetime of happiness. It is the contrast after hardship that makes happiness bearable and felt.
As this man is a father of the child, he himself had many a year ago been a child in the pram pushed by his own father. Has the old father the hardship in feeding his own household? We can bet on it. Have there been tears in the life of the old father? We can bet on that too. Has the thought of giving up ever crept into the old father? We don't really know, but we all experienced a similar moment after some failure.
So, young fathers and mothers, if there is one thing you can be sure of the prospects ahead, it is that hardship is lurking behind some corners along the path of life. But, we are also assured that, after hardship, there is happiness; that is, if you don't lose heart and keep going. A heart with confidence is always needed.
Keep going, parents, with confidence.
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