Getting past crippling depression and social anxiety and finally learn how to love and appreciate myself. If I hadn't, nothing else would have mattered.

Being a battered wife as an 18-19-20 year old, in times before shelters & hotlines, or even police that were helpful. Taught me to 1000% rely on myself, and that I Can rely on myself!

I'm with Sticks on this one. Sometimes I think the struggles are not worth going forward but we have no choice.

Different struggles at different times for many different reasons. The only thing they have made me is tired.

Looking back I’m grateful for all my struggles. I loved farming, especially the great outdoors. I loved working with the employees we had, mostly seasonal Italian ladies from the city and First Nation people from Branford. I knew I could work as hard as anyone but I really was no businessman. That old bugger at church has always stuck in my craw but in some ways he was right,
Maybe. And I valued my wife and partner because of the struggles we went through. Sadly I lost her to cancer, but fortunately the boys were in their twenties and in university. That was the start of my worst ever struggles just to keep going. I know there’s no shortage of widows and widowers out there so.."..

I struggled to carry on the family farm with my dad and first wife eventually having to get an off farm job. We were wholesale fruit growers in the Hamilton area and tried pick your own, farm tours, attractions and retail. My wife knocked herself out to make it go while we raised our three boys. I drove a school bus to help and pruned trees for a neighbour. Nothing seemed to be enough. Eventually I got an off farm job and my wife got back into supply teaching.
We were going to church at the time(early 80s) and I remember one older farmer telling me my heart just wasn’t in it.