Down the hourglass of life

It happened a few years back.....I had just appeared for my music grade exams about that time. My violin teacher called to tell me the letter containing my result had come, so I went to get it.

I was happy with my result. I had scored a wonderful distinction. I was happy...until I saw that all the other students who had scored better than me. Be it even by one mark...but, I felt bad cause I was the oldest appearing for the exam and yet was no match for them.

It's sad. Because now that I'm far from that day, it wasn't that big of a deal as I thought it was. And I feel stupid for making myself feel unworthy in their presence...because I compared.

I wish it was easy to overcome. Wish it didn't matter. Wish I could only look to how great my achievements are than to compare my successes with people around me. 

Yes, I get it. It is probably good and desirable if you are successful early on in life. But not everyone gets to have that. And I also find it very mean and rude when people pressurize you to be successful even though you've been trying for so long. It's doesn't always depend on me...it depends on a multitude of other factors. (I think economically sometimes).

"It's not like I want to fail at this, Aunt!"
"It's not that it's enjoyable for me to be here while everyone else is done with this obstacle and have moved on to other obstacles."

There, I said it. There'll always be obstacles and problems in life. Even if you're a child prodigy with a Master's Degree at 12. Once you've completed one obstacle, there's another lurking around waiting to surprise you after a while. (Obstacles help us grow...maybe that's why we never seem to get rid of them.)

I can't believe how people are so blinded by the average age and time it takes for most people to do something that they just can't accept the fact that some of us are slower or have different destinies written out for us. I do understand why people are fine with geniuses who finish things faster than the average. It's because of the time constraint...everyone was taught from a young age that someday, we're not going to be able to do what we want to after we retire, get married, have children, and eventually, pass on into the mighty heavens. 

But no-one knows who's time here is long or short.  And here's what I like to believe in.... 
Things may not go as per my timing, but when it does, I'm sure that it'll happen when it's right for me.

Our lives are differently shaped hourglasses....with different amounts of sand.....with different speeds at which our sands flow down....some glasses broken. But we're all hourglasses. We're all human. And we'll eventually get to our destinies...at different times, in our our own ways.