not getting ur way in life

I'm watching a show where our young heroine wants to be a poet, but she faces a lot of challenges. She wins a prize for her poetry and wants to study literature, but coming from an impoverished background and being a woman in the 1950s, the odds are stacked against her.

We really root for her.

We want her to achieve her dreams, but we see her life unfold differently. She ends up marrying into another poor family (though to the love of her life), and has three kids instead.

Later, we see her as a mother, reflecting on her life.

In one scene, her adult daughter, frustrated with her own struggles, lashes out: "I don't want to live like you," she says, alluding to her mother’s life as a housewife and her ongoing financial hardships.

Her mother responds:

"You're right. Don’t live the life I lived.
But you know… I found happiness in my own way.
There was sunshine in my life too.
I’ve had so many picture-perfect moments.
I just want you to acknowledge that my life was worthwhile too."

We see her speech lead to a flashback, to her husband waving goodbye with overwhelming warmth, her toddler daughter gleefully riding a tricycle. Despite everything, her life was filled with love and joy.

See this for what I mean.

Sometimes, life doesn’t turn out the way you planned.

Certainly, that doesn’t mean you should passively accept it—yes, you should fight for what you want and challenge the systems that stand in your way.

But what I found compelling was the reminder that there are dazzling, spectacular moments along the way in life, ones you never could have planned.

You may not have achieved exactly what you planned at 18. Life is funny that way. Life rarely follows the script, but it still delivers unforgettable scenes.

Perhaps my friend Aamir put it best. As he told me on one late-night drive in college—there are many happy endings to life.