The Narratives – Mohamed Miah

How do significant life events or the passage of time influence your perspective on life?

I’ve often wondered how much of our perspective is truly ours and how much is shaped by the events we endure. Do we see the world as it is, or do we see it through the tinted glass of experience? If you’d asked me this question ten, even five years ago, my answer would have been different. That, in itself, is proof that time and significant life events are the chisels that shape our outlook, whether we realise it or not.

The Arrogance of Certainty

When we’re young, we think we know everything. There’s a certainty in youth, a belief that the world operates on a set of rules we can navigate if we just play our cards right. But life doesn’t follow the script we expect. Loss, failure, illness—these are the real teachers. They break down the arrogance of certainty and replace it with something far more valuable: humility.

I used to think hard work alone was enough, that if you poured yourself into something, success would follow. But time showed me that luck, circumstances, and even the unseen forces of life play their part. That doesn’t mean we stop trying—it just means we stop expecting the world to bend to our will. Instead, we learn to adapt.

The Weight of Loss and the Value of Moments

There’s nothing like losing someone—or even losing a part of yourself—to force a shift in perspective. Whether it’s the loss of a loved one, the fading of youth, or the realisation that time is moving faster than you can grasp, these moments hit differently as you get older.

I’ve seen my body change, my health fluctuate, my patience with nonsense wear thinner. In my younger days, I may have been quicker to anger, more impulsive, but now? Now, I walk away more. I let things go. Not because I don’t care, but because I understand that peace is worth more than proving a point.

Significant events force us to pause. They remind us that time is the one currency we can’t earn back. We start measuring life in moments rather than milestones. A meal with family, a quiet cup of tea—these small things, which once seemed mundane, become the very essence of what we hold onto.

The Faster It Moves, The Slower We Become

When we were younger, we wanted time to move faster—always chasing the next stage, the next goal. But now? Now, it feels like time is sprinting ahead, and all we want is to slow it down. There’s an irony in that. The urgency to achieve fades, replaced by an urgency to be present.

I look at my children, growing into their own people, and I realise that one day, they won’t need me the same way they do now. That alone makes me want to hold on a little tighter, to soak in every bit of their laughter, their quirks, their presence. Because perspective, if nothing else, has taught me that everything changes, and nothing lasts forever.

The Only Constant Is Change

So, how do significant life events or the passage of time influence perspective? They strip away illusions. They force us to confront who we really are and what truly matters. They make us softer in some ways, harder in others. But most importantly, they teach us that the only thing we can truly control is how we respond.

If there’s one thing I know now that I didn’t before, it’s this, the world will keep moving, people will come and go, and time will never wait. But amidst all of that, if you can find contentment in the present moment, you’re doing well.

That’s the perspective time has given me. And I’m sure, years from now, it’ll probably shift again.