No matter how independent you want to believe you are, at some point in your life, you depended on someone to reach the next level in life.  Be they family members, friends or mentors. You can point to tangible or intangible things you achieved with their help. 

I always think of myself as an independent young man, despite these thoughts, I can confidently say and point to some people that helped me at different stages of my life. I know you can point to a few too.

In my life, I've been lucky enough to have been helped by strangers who showcase their humanity by overcoming their own dislike of me (People mistake my personality for pride). 

These people helped me make my way into who I am today - even continuing to do so know. 

In the same vein, there are a lot of others who let me down. The ones that I turned to at my lowest ebb only for them to turn away and ignore. Some even lay a huge red carpet over a pit pretending to help but pulled the rug from under me. It is even more painful if the person is a relative, a very close friend, a pastor, or your partner. 

It's fair to say that those who walked away also have a major impact on my life. It's never been a pleasant experience, it is a pain I had to live with but, the pain I endured made me a better person.

If you are currently going through this pain, particularly at this time of year, I am sorry that you have been let down in this way but you need to be grateful that it happened. 

I am grateful to everyone who said no to me when I needed help. I believe if they had not turned me down, I wouldn't have searched for the answers in the right places. 

I strongly believe that when someone we depend on lets us down, it allows us to work on our ability to help ourselves out of that situation or mentality. I believe this because I have experienced it.

One of the best ways of dealing with the people who thought you will not make it in life is to be grateful to them for helping you unlock the inner potentials that you didn't know you had.

We can be thankful to those who don't deserve our thanks.

Akinpelumi, Akinboye