Daily writing prompt

Do you believe in fate/destiny?

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Do I believe in Fate and Destiny? Short answer, No, not really! Now for the long answer. I think there are things that are beyond a person’s control, but I don’t think I would call them fate or destiny.

Fate and or destiny suggest that people don’t have control of their own lives. There might be the odd things or two that might be out of their hands, but then it’s on a person to react to things happening around them. Whether it be actively changing what they can change, or just plainly accepting the things that they can’t.

I believe life is too chaotic for a lot of things to be predetermined. A person still has to act on something, even if it might be subconsciously. Their decisions or actions may vary based on how they were brought up, things that have happened in their lives, or the environment they find themselves in, amongst other things, but I still believe that a person can consciously make decisions regardless of these decisions or aware of these things affecting their mindset or biases.

Every choice matters and has its own consequences, and this is a more important, stronger driving force in life than fate or destiny. Alternatively, I believe the argument of nature versus nurture is a more intrinsic in how people make decisions, how their brain works and how they were brought up is a more potent driver to how they eventually come to make decisions. Of course, there are other factors that come into play when it comes to an individual making choices with their lives and how they live them.

I also believe a person’s conscious and subconscious thinking has a role to play in how a person decides to act and what they actively choose to do or how they feel compelled to act. Their world view, their ethics and morals also guide them through life, whether they are always aware of it, while they are acting on something is another factor.

In conclusion, there are too many factors in life to leave down to fate or destiny. These concepts feel too simplistic and vague to me, they ignore so many things and disregard nuance. They can also give the feeling that a person doesn’t have any modicum of control on their lives, where in reality I believe a person has more control than they realise, and they can decide how things play out in their own lives, in spite of hurdles, rather than just letting themselves get pushed down a path that they didn’t want to go down.