From The Desk of Maverick Brenton.
Subject: How To Overcome The Darkness.
The other morning after a long and very deep sleep - I awoke to a world covered in snow.
In my room, it was very cold.
And for quite some time, I remained in my bed, drinking coffee and watching the snow fall outside my window.
That cold world outside made me think back to a time when my entire world was just as cold, and numb.
It made me think, about how I rebuilt from nothing, and found purpose when all I had was pain.
And even though I am a long way from the summit of my mountain, looking back down on where I was and where I am now, feels really fucking good.
It feels good because despite falling down, I got up, dusted off and I tried again.
Now I’m back from the dead - filled with a fire that is burning hotter than the sun, and happier than I’ve been in years.
All I ever wanted to do was create art that helps people, lift weights and study the world - but it took me years of pain and misery to finally decide, to actually do that.
And so..
What once, was a broken down and injured body that could not do a single push-up without intense pain, is now a lean and mean machine that can do anything I demand of it.
What once, was a depressed and suicidal mind, is now a creative, happy and adventurous one.
What was a terrible life is now a much better one.
Back then, I hated my life - because I didn’t have the one thing that makes me happy: my freedom.
And back then, unknown to anyone who isn’t my inner circle - I**,** the guy who wasn’t afraid of anything, sat in the shower of his rented room, a long way from home, and completely broke down in tears, from exhaustion, depression, physical injury and the worst loneliness he’d ever experienced.
You want some real shit?
There you go.
I’m not here to wear a mask and show you how amazing my life is.
I am here to rip open my fucking heart and bleed the pure bloody passion of my mission onto paper.
That’s who I am.
Now listen here, tough guy:
In everyday life, burying your pain like men are supposed to, and pretending you’re fine, does not make you a tough man - it just eats away at the quality of your life like a fucking cancer, until your reality is reduced to nothing more than the comfort of a few mind dulling pleasures: like alcohol, entertainment, meaningless sex, or worse - pornography.
Putting up with pain works when pain needs to be put up with in order to win and move forward: but when you tolerate pain and make yourself suffer for no reason and no gain, other than your own ignorant adherence to an unreasonable expectation for yourself - you’re wasting your fucking life, buddy.
That night in my shower, I was absolutely destroyed.
For the second time in a few years, I had reached the bottom of my psyche and my life felt as though it was no longer worth living.
But I came back.
And I came back stronger, smarter, happier and with a much deeper understanding of what is really important in life: Your physical health, your mental health and your connection to other people.
Now I spend my days creating my art.
And I spend my nights creating more art.
Heaven?
Yes.
So, in this article: I have a message to share with you fake motherfuckers who are destroyed and lost, but act like you’re fine - just like I used to.
And it’s not a message for the guys with little problems, either.
It is not a message for the guys who are having a bad day, a bad week or bad month.
It’s not a message, for the guys who have got the blues.
If you’ve got the blues - just go lift some weights, smoke a cigar, write down your vision and get working.
So, who is the message for, then?
Let me tell you:
This message is for those of you who feel as though you’re done.
It’s for the guys who have nothing left and the guys who see no purpose to living anymore - the guys who can see nothing but the darkness, surrounding them and closing in on them, everywhere they look.
The ones at rock bottom and the ones standing on the edge of the cliff - just like I was in my shower on that lonely, cold night.
That, is who I write for, today.
And so.
Life’s got you in a corner - I hear?
Shit is rough, shit is tough and you’re starting to question your own worth as a human being.
You say to yourself, things like this:
“What is the point of trying? There is no hope, anymore. My life is fucked.”
I can hear you.
And I can feel your pain.
Maybe you lost a family member, a good friend or a lover.
Maybe you lost your job and are now crushed by despair for what the future will bring.
Maybe you have lost yourself, and sleep is the only escape from the misery of your purposeless existence. You crave it because you can turn off your mind and forget about it all - until you wake up in the morning.
Any, or all of the above, it doesn’t matter - what matters is that you’re in a dark and lonely world, where no light can be seen, and you want to end your life because there is no longer any hope remaining inside you.
You can’t see beyond the pain. Beyond the darkness. All you can see is what you are stuck inside right now - and that’s fair.
Take enough hits from life and you will do either of the following:
A) Wear down and give in.
B) Become harder and keep going.
But for those of you who I write for, today - option B, is not your option.
You are currently down and out.
When you get out of bed in the morning you feel heavy in the chest. And immediately despair washes over you, as you remember the reality of your life situation.
You have no purpose and no energy.
You have no passion, and no love.
You have no mission.
You’re a lost soul - wandering the earth and wishing the pain of your existence would leave you alone.
Wishing for something, better.
Every single day is a war for control of your mind.
It’s a war against the incessant, negative, and crushing thoughts, that seem to be trapped inside your skull - digging their dirty nails into your psyche, whenever you think you have seen a glimmer of light, and hope.
You don’t know how much you got left in you, but you know it ain’t much at all.
Hell’s upon you, son.
Hope? Vision? Faith?
Those things died with your dreams, back when you were actually alive, and now there’s nothing but this feeling of emptiness inside you, that never goes away.
This is where most give up.
Unable to find a way out of the insurmountable darkness – they take the only way out they know of.
In one brief moment, everything they could have been, done and created - is no longer a possibility because they’re gone.
They tap out of life.
They call upon death.
And they tell him they’ve had enough.
So death comes at their request and he takes them into the nothing with him.
As you read at the start of this piece, I’ve walked this line - more than once.
And here is what I have to say about it:
Welcome to the proving grounds, boy - this is where you will be tested by the gods, as they determine whether or not you are worthy of becoming who you have the potential to be.
If you pass their test, you will gain the power knowing who you are and you will find purpose in your pain - then you will rise up out of nothing to become a great man.
If you fail their test (give up), you will remain in the darkness.
Do you understand what I just said or did you skim over my fucking words?
I will say it again:
What you are currently going through is a test.
It’s just life: testing you and pushing you down to see if you have what it takes to become what you could be.
If I made it through the darkness, you can make it through the darkness too - all it takes is flipping the switch in your mind and deciding to fight back with absolutely everything you have left within you.
All it takes, is getting up and trying again - one more time.
In my mind, there are two great things about hitting the bottom and having nothing left:
1) You have NOTHING to lose and EVERYTHING to gain.
2) All you have left is what you’re really made of.
At the very bottom, you will learn what kind of man is really inside your skin: a gutless pussy or a warrior.
If you’re a gutless pussy - just lay down in the dirt and let life continue to kick the fucking shit out of you. Keep bitching. Keep whining. And get your ass off my website while you’re at it.
But.
If you’re warrior - you will find a damn way. And you will find a damn way because you’re a man with nothing to lose and everything to gain.
You’re dangerous, man.
And to become great in this world - you must be a dangerous man.
All men of greatness have faced the darkness at some point in their lives and all of them have made it through that darkness - to become the men of greatness that they now are.
They wandered around in the darkness, gritting their teeth and searching relentlessly for a way out.
They searched. They searched. And they searched.
Until they found the light.
They didn’t sit on the fucking ground and cry - they wanted to get out, and so they did what needed to be done, to get out.
This is what I want you to know, today.
There’s a light somewhere, no matter how dark your world currently is, but you will never find that light if you’re sitting on the floor, cowering in fear - you will only find the light if you’re up and _trying a_nd searching for it.
Around the world, every single day, men give in to the darkness.
Men choose to end their live’s, or they choose to lay down in the dirt and become doormats for the world to walk on.
They decide to be content in their misery - and so they remain there forever.
Fuck. That.
Would you like to know what I did that night in the shower when I broke down?
Here is exactly what I did:
I walked away from everything I was doing. I started again from nothing. I stopped doing shit I hated. And I started demanding a better experience for myself.
What was the result?
At first I was lost and confused - but I embraced it. Slowly, things got better. I started doing what I really wanted to do. I stopped listening to other people and I trusted my intuition instead.
Now, many moons later, here I am doing exactly what I want to be doing: creating the work I’ve always wanted to create, lifting weights and studying the world.
So.
Based off what I know about the mysterious Universe we all exist within - you’ve found my work, or it has found you, because you have something more, inside of you.
You’re here, on my website, for a reason.
That reason is this:
There is a fire that burns deep inside you, under all the bullshit you tell yourself and all the bullshit everyone else tells you, about yourself.
And my work is created for the sole purpose of stoking that fire until it burns hot like the sun.
But.
You must understand, that my words are only kindling.
They are nothing but the means.
You must take my words and you must apply them to your world.
Now - listen to me closely.
The deeper you are in the darkness and the further you are down that lonely path - the stronger you are going to be when you find your way out.
Trust me.
It’s going to make you fucking solid.
And it’s going to turn you into the person you need to be, to get where you want to be.
If you can hang on, and if you can endure the pain - you will get through.
So.
Don’t give in.
Don’t be a pussy - _be a warrior.
_
Fight back like your fucking life depends on it, because it does.
Until Next Time.
Filed under · Motivation
