While it is true that one’s past doesn’t define someone, I believe that our past is what brought one to where one is now. While it’s true that one’s past can hold someone back, it should not prevent the dream one has for the future. However, in the journey of achieving one’s goals, some things have to break free and some things should be made free. Although it may be difficult and scary to break free and to let go, giving the freedom yourself and others deserve is a massive step in forging the future one hopes to see.
One of the things people need to break free from is their environment. Although one’s environment can be positive, spreading one’s wings in search of a more suitable location for one’s goals is an important step one must take. Especially from a negative environment, those whose wings have been clipped for the majority of their life deserve the freedom to become anything they want and go where one is supported.
Another thing that has to be made free are the people around us. I don’t mean that one actively restricts their growth, but oftentimes, the expectations of one’s friends and family can be the very thing that shackles that. People, under the right circumstances, are capable of change, and internalizing that, removes prejudice and any biases towards a person. Everyone is doing their best to make their goals happen and our minds shouldn’t prevent us from helping them.
Sometimes, the very thing that must be made free is ourselves. People often pursue these lofty ambitions of being someone they are not, only to be met with disappointment. Working to be someone different and not for one’s betterment only serves to cage oneself. Accepting our limitations and flaws is key to starting to work and improve upon them so that one may grow into their own unique person.
In my line of work, this freedom that I aspire for all to have is the opportunity for the Three Factors of Success to be maximized—Environment for Earth, People around us for man, and ourselves for Heaven. Though the past can hurt, remembering the times one was bound is a gateway to help others. When the day comes that one has finally freed oneself from their shackles, looking back to the times of hardship will give meaning to the success that one will one day achieve.