Why Forced Opportunity Is Sometimes Needed

There comes a time when the universe throws a challenge at you that seems overwhelmingly difficult. You’re faced with the option to either accomplish your goal or forfeit and accept defeat. Forced opportunity is that moment when you are faced with a practical opportunity in your everyday life to either learn and grow the hard way or miss out on the chance to better yourself.

This weekend, some friends and I went on an 11-mile hike to some picturesque Punchbowls along California’s coast. The trail is an out-and-back that crosses desert-like sections of wilderness that lead to piles of rocks and canyons in the mountains filled with water from a nearby creek and waterfall. I tried hiking the same trail before without a map but had only reached the first punchbowl that sits on the trail right after the first campsite.

It was during this second attempt to the rest of the punchbowls and the falls that we ran into another group of hikers carrying rope to scramble and climb safely over slippery rocks in waist-deep water. We made it all the way to one of the larger punchbowls towards the end of the trail before being faced with the most difficult challenge of the day.

Two friends in the group were hesitant about climbing up the steep and slippery rock face of the waterfall that was feeding cool water into the punchbowl. The…