A friend and colleague of mine, who’s an athlete, told me that “pain is weakness leaving the body”. I agreed with him until this morning. Pain is not weakness leaving the body, but rather weakness leaving the mind. Pain is something biological, but there’s always mind over matter. Up until some point we can decide not to let the pain get in our way, to not let it stop us.
I have seen it and am seeing it up close and personal. People who experience pain, daily pain that does not go away, but still keep going. Admittedly, a person becomes limited in his or her activities, but the mind says to not give up. It’s the mind that’s getting stronger.
And what about emotional pain? That doesn’t make your body stronger. Emotional pain strengthens character. However, recently, it has become clear to me that the mind doesn’t have to be a titanium fortress. Weakness is allowed. It makes you human.
