“Hard times create strong men. Strong men create good times. Good times create weak men. And, weak men create hard times.”

―G. Michael Hopf, Those Who Remain

The year is 2022, and boy have we gone through some historical times, eh?

When COVID-19 first hit in late 2019 in China, my parents in Vancouver already warned me that the pandemic is going to last a long time... Don't look at my parents, man... They are not prophetic by any means. I immigrated alongside them at age 12 when SARS first broke out.

This is technically the second time I witnessed a global pandemic affecting millions, killing millions first hand...

We've seen long-term relationships break up. People getting married. People dying. And people get busy living and dying. It puts things into perspective (so cliche but true).

Funny side story: Many years ago, Bill Gates made a joke about how our generation, the millennials, will face a pandemic as serious as the Spanish Flu in front of a reporter. #nobodylistened.

Fast forward three years later when I relocated to Ontario after the height of COVID-19, guess whose book was a best-seller at Indigo Chapters near Eataly Toronto? 😳.

That is why I started following almost all of the billionaires and ultra-millionaires on Twitter. They might give funny, side pieces of advice on how to invest in whichever stock. 🤣.

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When I was a teenager, I wanted a well-made house, a nice car, a supportive spouse two lovely, obedient children, and an Ivy League degree, all in that chronological order. I wanted to feel valuable to everyone, and useful, to be loved.

Nowadays, I only want a painless death. That is all I want. After enduring grueling medical treatments at age 24, I learned three things about death:

1. Death is certain. Everyone is equal in the face of Death (inspiration from Steve Jobs).

2. Almost everyone's death is going to be very painful. I had one friend tell me that during the pandemic, her mother somehow broke her rib; thus, worsening to kidney failure, followed by death. I cannot imagine the physical anguish it takes to eventually go... My maternal grandparents passed away from complications of chemotherapy and radiation therapy. They threw up at least four times a day, for eight months during the medical treatments.

3. Death can get anyone, at any time; although the chances are slim. There are moments in history where the odds simply add up, and the person was at the wrong place at the wrong time, eg. Princess Diana's death, that girl who lost both her parents to a plane crash (in the news), etc.

I wished that some adult would have told me that life isn't going to be smooth sailing to prepare me better, for adulthood. I wish that every event that tests our adversity limit could be within our limits but life doesn't work that way.

"Hard times [really] do create strong men", Mr. Hopf. After five years of attending therapy sessions, I can attest to that. 🙂.