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There is always light after darkness…

  • Writer: basamparkar
    basamparkar
  • Jan 22, 2017
  • 6 min read

Updated: Jan 10, 2019

Just like the night gives way to a brand new day, our lives are more or less the same. Every little thing that happens in our lives is for a reason. Whatever it might be, it paves the way for our future. Nothing is stagnant, life also moves on. Life is unpredictable. It is humanly impossible to know what will happen next in our lives, but we love to predict our future. There’s nothing wrong in doing so, but one has to be open to accept whatever happens, regardless of whether it is in our favor or goes completely against it. Very few people take things in their stride. A majority, including me, love to hang on to what couldn’t happen. We drag ourselves to a point where nothing seems to be moving and then we question The Almighty’s master plan. We lose faith not only in ourselves, but also in our Creator. If everything had to go as planned, wouldn’t life be much simpler?


I am no stranger to this vicious circle. Ups and downs have been an integral part of my life. I have said this many times over that I don’t believe in asking The Almighty for anything. And it is true that I have rarely received His blessings at the very instant I have asked for something. I have many life experiences to share to prove my point. But at the same time, whenever I have pursued my dreams, and dedicated my focused efforts on making them a reality, I have achieved favorable and positive results. But ego takes over, and I attribute my success to my hard work and efforts. Only to realize later that it was His master plan that never let me detach from my dreams.


I am an engineer by qualification. An engineering course in India is usually for a duration of four years. But I struggled to pass my subjects consistently, resulting in a backlog of subjects from previous semesters. But I refused to give up. I studied, not so very hard, and passed every subject in the last two semesters. Only because I made a decision not to let go of my self-belief and gave it my best. End result, I completed my course and obtained my engineering qualification in five years.

After having worked in an MNC back home in India for a year, I arrived in Dubai with big dreams. I was like any other young expat with a five year plan. I had the option of continuing to work in India and move to Honk Kong, but I chose to follow family tradition and be closer to my family who were scattered between Dubai, Kuwait and Bahrain. Even after having the qualification and experience, I struggled to find a job for almost ten months. And the first job that I landed was not a memorable experience, I had to quit after eleven months. With a broken heart, I returned home to India. But my heart was back in Dubai, I wanted to be there. Luck was with me, I got an interview offer from Dubai. I decided to give it one more shot, flew down to Dubai, had a great interview and bagged a really good job. I am still working with the same organization for almost nine years now. Owners have changed hands, but I have had my share of learning and corporate growth.


Let’s talk about something emotional now. Love is an integral part of every person’s life. And I am no different, I have a heart that beats. I had never been in a relationship before, and I was always eager to have that special someone in my life. The dream of romancing a beautiful girl was very much alive in me. I had my share of crushes and infatuations, and luckily none of them materialized. But then one fine day, I got to meet that special someone. Even though I was a quiet and shy guy, I have no clue how I ended up talking to her. We got to know each other so well, we ended up becoming good friends. But I wanted to take it forward. She was compatible with me by all means, so I decided to pop the question to her. To my dismay, she refused. Heartbroken to some extent, I tried to stay away from her thoughts, but I couldn’t. I proposed again and she refused. I had decided not to pursue this dream anymore. During the same period, my parents landed up in Dubai out of nowhere to see another girl. I declined to even see this complete stranger that my parents had chosen for me. I bought myself some time, a week to be precise, expecting this new girl would reject me due to my behavior. And instead focused on winning the heart of my first love. Guess what, refusal again! And then I decided to meet the stranger whom my parents had chosen and approved, in a typical arranged marriage setting. It must be some good deeds that I might have done previously that I got the opportunity to meet this wonderful girl. We talked, there was a click, and I decided to make her my partner for life. We got engaged the next month, and got married in a little more than a year after that. That was the best decision of my life. We were to be blessed with our bundle of joy in the next couple of years. Life was complete!


My wife was diagnosed with late stage cancer a few months before our baby was born. That was like a tsunami that arrived unannounced and washed away every happiness from our lives. But I had to do something, I couldn’t let my wife suffer this pain all alone. We took the decision of welcoming our child into this world and then started off with her treatment. I have been accused of delaying my wife’s treatment by many who have no right to do so, but it was a decision we both made consciously, for the safety of our unborn child. I was with my wife throughout her treatment, pumped all the positivity into her that I could. I just didn’t want her to lose faith in The Almighty and lose her confidence. And she sailed through two years and eight months of gruesome treatment schedules with grit and determination. And I am proud that she raised our child in spite of her sickness and work. I knew beforehand that she wasn’t to live long enough but I never told her this bitter truth. Because I wanted her to live every moment that she had left to live. She was destined to live a short life and she crossed over to the other world peacefully. I didn’t question destiny because I knew my beloved wife was resting in peace away from pain. And this is what keeps me at peace.


I started my entrepreneurial journey a few months before I lost my wife but I never involved myself actively. After her passing, I had to kick start my business because I had to fulfill our dreams. And my job alone could never help me do that. I worked hard and was determined to succeed. I saw good results and had started to climb the ladder of entrepreneurial excellence. But then circumstances changed, I started to go through a downfall. I was down on self-confidence and self-belief and high on self-doubt. In spite of giving my time and energy to the business, I was not seeing expected results. I questioned almost everything that I possibly could, but I never questioned myself. I was been offered help from all sides but I doubted intentions and stuck to my agonizing behavior. During this phase, I was fortunate to have a really beautiful relationship with a very generous and kind-hearted person and I felt I could move out of my shell. But my ego and short temper ruined this relationship also. Fortunately, self-realization kicked in early, I regretted my actions and started to undo the damage. I am now at a stage where I have regained my confidence and eliminated all doubts. I realize I have to avoid procrastination and it is my actions that will give me results. I know my business will flourish again. And I am sure that I will mend all broken relationships.

These are just a few examples from my life. I am sure there are many more. But from all these events and experiences, I have received the greatest learning of my life. No matter how bad things get, or how good your life is, one does not always receive his wishes on a golden platter. And in my case, I have always received what I wanted, albeit with a delay. I am thankful to The Almighty for His blessings. He is watching over each one of us and he never leaves prayers unanswered. Everything falls into place, one has to be patient.


Every morning, we are reminded that there is light after darkness. But we forget this fact sometimes and choose to believe there is no end to the night and it will last forever. It simply won’t. Nothing lasts forever!

 
 
 
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©2020 by Basam Parkar.

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