Bobby Gadhia & George Ikua A reflection on success, masculinity, and the quiet inner battles behind achievement. Introduction: The Inevitability of Struggle There are conversations we naturally steer clear of. Not because they are controversial, but because they demand honesty about something uncomfortable: suffering. Life has a strange way of bringing trouble without warning. It rarely waits until we feel ready. Problems show up when careers are just starting to take off, when relationships seem secure, or when everything looks like it's going in the right direction. And when they do come, they rarely ask for permission. If we take the time to notice the pattern, a difficult truth becomes clear: struggle is not an exception to life; it is part of its structure. The Bible illustrates this clearly: “Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat food from it all the days of your life.” Genesis 3:17. The verse does not condemn work itself; r...
The Restaurant in Nairobi: When Rejection Becomes Personal Michael was waiting anxiously in a restaurant in Nairobi. He had arrived early. Hopeful men often get there early. It gives them time to rehearse what they might say, to check their phone repeatedly, and occasionally to look around pretending they are not looking for someone. For the past month, Michael had been talking to Jolly almost every night. After work, he always called her. And something strange would happen whenever they talked. He would find himself smiling without realizing it. His coworkers noticed it once when he was leaving the office. “You look suspiciously happy,” one of them had joked. Michael laughed it off, but privately, he knew something had shifted. He had started calling her his dream girl. She would laugh shyly— the kind of laugh that leaves a man wondering if he’s being indulged or encouraged. He had looked at her picture so many times that he knew every angle of her face. She was breathta...