Pressure

A friend hurt his knee in a basketball game last year. He could neither walk nor stand up, so the ambulance had to carry him off to the nearby hospital. He had to scrape together hundreds of dollars to pay for the ambulance because his health insurance would not provide cover. After he was out, it was clear that he was under intense pressure. The pain was killing him, and the substantial loss in money drove him crazy. He told me that he felt like going back right away from where we were. He wanted to take a 16-hour train alone that would cost him another hundred or so dollars, which was foolish since there were plenty of cheap flights available. Everyone convinced him not to go with the idea, but he could not care less. Perhaps, he just felt that it was the right decision and doing it would help him stave off the pressure.

Men resort to doing the unthinkable when they come under pressure. Whether it is the pain from losing in a soccer game, or failing to put some food on the table, or getting shitty result in an exam, or being dumped by a girlfriend, no one likes the feeling of being under pressure. Some are strong enough to stand through it, but others reach the tipping point easily and decide to pull the trigger. It is a small wonder that we are seeing crazy things in the world today in huge numbers – all stemmed from men losing the battle and choosing to do the latter.

But you cannot put complete blame on them can you? Some are just born weak, while others face a pressure so big that they wilt. Sometimes the ball just is not falling when you want it to and pressure robs those unlucky men of their souls. You cannot simply pass on judgments unless you yourselves have gone through a similar battle.