The loss of a friendship, the birth of a business.

I’m a strong believer that Everything happens for a reason. Even when it doesn’t seem like it in the beginning, sooner or later the big picture will start to reveal itself.

I had a huge fall out with a very close friend. I did all that I could to mend it but it just didn't happen. At the time I didn’t understand, because I was focusing on fixing things. When I finally shifted my focus, everything became clear to me. I became grateful for the fall out.

‘Growth is often painful and scary. There’s no growth without change; there is no change without fear or loss; and there is no loss without pain. Every change involves a loss of some kind: you must let go of  old ways in order to experience the new.’ – Rick Warren

Sometimes when things go wrong, we focus so much on fixing it, instead of understanding the reason behind it.

For me, my reason was as little as time. Yes time. You might think, what does time have to do with this? Well let me explain... When you have a close friend, you invest so much of your time in them; random visits, shopping, sleepovers, driving them to places (as I was the only one with a car plus licence at the time).

Now I had all this free time on my hands, and I finally started investing in myself. It was as though I was being prepared for what was to come. Don’t get me wrong, not that I didn’t appreciate what we had, but we needed to be separated for me to become who I am today. I was suddenly able to focus on my ideas and  turn them into a reality.

I also spent a lot of time reading which became a major turning point. One of the books I read that woke me up and changed my perspective was "The Purpose Driven Life" by Rick Warren. The chapter on "restoring broken fellowship", in my case friendship, was a revelation. Even though I wasn’t able to restore it, I was challenged to pick up the phone and set a date. If you do not swallow your pride, you will choke yourself. So I said my sorries, wished them well, forgave them and went on living my life with my head held high.

We all have dreams but not everyone will be part of it. Don’t always hold on for the sake of what used to be. Let go and let God guide you into your next chapter. My next chapter was launching my business, following my passion and pursuing my goals. Everything does happen for a reason, even when it doesn’t seem like it.