Some people learn and do things efficiently like a piece of cake, whereas some can’t manage or even understand how it comes about. I’m sure everyone experienced such setback! But the most important thing is what we are going to do after that? Regardless of any situations, no one started off being perfect. As long as we keep telling ourselves ‘Okay, I’ll try harder!’ ‘Come on, let’s do it!’ when we run into difficulties or setbacks and bravely face up to it, it’s all right.

-    Mr. Ikeda

I believe everyone encountered times when you feel like you ‘can’t do something.’ Say for example, some people may take a while to do revision while we ourselves take up the whole day but cannot remember a thing; some people may take a short time to learn a musical instrument whereas we can’t. Even the school’s role model has their own weakness. Some people may score low grades in some papers but there sure are other subjects which they are really good in. When we confront situations which are out of our control, it is inevitable that we would feel sad or discouraged being defeated by setbacks.

However, we must bear in mind that a single type of rice can provide food for hundreds of people. Everyone’s learning capability, comprehension abilities, memories and growth differs. Hence, we mustn’t compare with others to determine our capabilities, the most important thing is to never give up and advance forward with hope. When people are better than us, we must learn from their strengths and realistically put in earnest efforts one step at a time. Ultimately, we’ll definitely succeed.

When our grades drop remarkably or when a competition didn’t turn out to be the way we expected, when we fall behind in a lot of things or when we encounter unpredictable situations, the main key is not to be afraid or anxious and continue to advance no matter what happens. Do you know who Mr. Toda is? During the war in Japan, our organization fell apart; the person who rebuilt our organization is Mr. Toda. At that time, he was just released from prison, and on the second day of his release, he went everywhere to ask for lawyers opinions on his business situation hoping that he has sufficient finance to rebuild our organization.

After that, Mr. Toda then found out that out of his 17 companies, he not only didn’t earn any profit but also owed more than two million in debt. He doesn’t know where to start from then, but because of his firm determination to persevere and a very clear vision of the organization’s future; he took the first step. Although his health was very frail, malnourished and has difficulties walking back then, he still chants daimoku and eventually overcame his career crisis.

My dear friends, all of you must work hard too. With the spirit of striving and doing your utmost you will never meet dead end. An old saying goes: ‘Happiness will smile towards those who earnestly strive in their endeavour’. It all comes down to our actions, as long as we make the first move wisdom wells forth. Say for example: Homework which you struggle with, math questions which you can never solve correctly, problems which you cannot break through, the fear of public speaking, no courage to apologize to friends or your own personal weakness, as long as you never give up, carrying hope in your hearts, you can definitely overcome it.

The darker it is, the closer it is to dawn.  Do you understand this saying? Moments before dawn, the sky is at its darkest which is also similar to our life. As we approach success, it’s the toughest and the hardest moments to bear moment but as long as we endure, we will eventually see the glimmer of light. Just like running for an instance, when we are approaching the finishing line, our body is already exhausted from the prolonged running. But as long as you persevere running, the victory is yours. What if life’s hopeless? Be your own ray of light and light up your path!

Labels: e. Words of mentor