September 17, 2025- The beginning and end of our power

Life is not the way it’s supposed to be, it’s the way it is. The way you cope with it is what makes the difference. 

~Virginia Satir

Nobody is pulling any strings. The universe is not conspiring to make our lives more difficult than they need to be, nor are the stars aligning with the purpose to make all our dreams come true. We can deflect all the glory and all the blame off to our circumstances, or we can realize that our lives are determined by our choices, and we can take ownership.

Yes, there are those who are marginalized. There are entire groups of people for whom life is more difficult due to things that are outside their control. Yes, there are people born into privilege, starting their lives pretty far ahead of others. We don’t control any of that at the moment. While we can devote our entire lives to working for a more equitable world, all we have right now is our next choice.

We must not minimize the agency we have in our lives. We must not give away all our power to our circumstances and the systems around us. Advantages can be squandered. Disadvantages can be overcome. Our job is to take our lives for whatever they are, then make choices that will let us keep growing into an incrementally better version of us, day after day. There is power in our ability to choose. That is where our power begins and ends.