I used to believe that life was a straight road. That if I planned everything perfectly, if I tried hard enough, fought long enough, and refused to give up, things would always go my way. But life doesn’t work like that. And sometimes, no matter how much you love, how much you try, or how deeply you wish for something to happen, it just doesn’t.
I learned this lesson the hard way.
There was a time in my life when I held on too tightly—to people, to dreams, to a version of my life that I thought I needed. I fought for relationships that were falling apart, begged for love that was slipping through my fingers, and cried myself to sleep over opportunities that never turned into anything more. It felt like life was punishing me, like no matter what I did, I kept losing what I wanted the most.
I remember one night, sitting alone in my room, staring at my phone, waiting for a message that never came. My heart ached. It was one of those moments when the silence itself felt loud. I wanted so badly to believe that if I just held on a little longer, if I just did one more thing, maybe, just maybe, things would turn around. But they didn’t.
And that’s when I realized—maybe it wasn’t supposed to.
Maybe some things are meant to fall apart so better things can come together. Maybe the things we lose are not losses at all, but redirections. Maybe the people who walk away were never ours to keep. And maybe, just maybe, life isn’t about forcing things to happen but about trusting the timing of our journey.
It’s easy to say, “If it’s meant to be, it will be,” but it’s another thing entirely to believe it when your heart is breaking. When you’re standing in the wreckage of something you thought would last forever. When you’re trying to hold back tears in a crowded room, pretending you’re fine. But sometimes, letting go is the bravest thing you can do.
I look back now and see all the times I tried to force something that wasn’t right for me. The relationships I tried to hold onto even when they were draining me. The jobs I thought were my dream but left me feeling empty. The places I thought I belonged but never truly felt at home in. And I thank life for not giving me what I thought I wanted.
Because what’s meant for you will never require you to beg. It will never make you feel like you have to chase it down, like you’re not enough. It will never leave you feeling empty. What’s meant for you will feel natural, like breathing. It will stay, not because you forced it to, but because it belongs to you.
I won’t say it’s easy. Letting go of control, surrendering to the unknown, and trusting that life has a plan—it’s terrifying. But I’ve learned that when you stop forcing things, when you stop gripping so tightly, life has a way of surprising you. The right people, the right opportunities, the right moments—they come. And when they do, they come effortlessly.
So if you’re holding onto something that’s hurting you, if you’re afraid to let go because you don’t know what’s next, I want you to know this: life has a way of working itself out. What’s truly meant for you will find its way to you, no matter how far it has to travel. And what’s not meant for you? No matter how tightly you hold on, it will slip through your fingers.
Trust that.
Trust that what’s meant to be will be. And when it finally arrives, you’ll understand why everything else had to fall apart.
