When I was around seven years old, I experienced something simple that planted a quiet truth in me — one that has stayed ever since: if it’s meant to be, it will be. I didn’t know it at the time, but a lost bicycle key would become the beginning of a personal philosophy I still carry with me today.
I was playing in the yard with my neighborhood friends, riding around on my mother’s cycle. It was a yard full of plants, and we spent a lot of our childhood there. Everything was fine until I realized the key to the cycle was missing.
I searched everywhere — in the dirt, under leaves, between branches. Nothing. I couldn’t find it. And it was the only key we had.
I walked home scared. Not just because I lost something — but because I was afraid of what my father would say. I was always a little nervous around him. With a shaky voice, I told my parents I had lost the key and that I’d already searched for it.
I don’t remember now whether my father scolded me. What I remember is what he told me next:
“First, pray. Then search again. If it’s meant to be found, it will be. If not, you tried your best.”
We went back together and searched thoroughly — still nothing. Disappointed, we started walking toward the exit. I remember feeling hopeless and ashamed. Then something brushed against my toe.
It was the key. The ring of the keychain had caught on my foot.
My father looked at me and calmly said something I’ve never forgotten:
“See? I told you. If it’s meant to be, you’ll find it. But only if you try.”
It wasn’t just about the key. It was about life. And I didn’t know it then, but that moment planted something deep inside me — a quiet rule I’ve carried ever since.
Try Your Best — If It’s Meant to Be, It Will Be
That day gave me a personal philosophy:
Pray. Try your best. Then let go.
If something is meant for you, it will come to you.
If not, even your best effort won’t change that.
But if you never try, you’ll never know.
I reflected more deeply on this in a post about why we want control — and never truly have it, where I explored how fear often drives our desire to hold on.
I didn’t always remember this. I grew up. Got distracted. Faced new situations. But this truth stayed quietly in me, guiding more of my life than I realized.
Moments That Brought Me Back to This Truth
There have been moments in life when this quiet rule reminded me of itself — especially in times of loneliness, disappointment, or waiting.
One such moment happened during my college years.
I had a hard time making friends. Not because I didn’t want to — but because I lived by certain values. Lying never sat well with me. While I may have done it at times, the idea of lying has always felt uncomfortable. Insulting others for fun never made sense either — unless someone truly did something wrong, I saw no reason to speak in a way that would hurt. As for vulgar language, I’ve avoided it entirely — it simply feels crude, and never necessary. I didn’t drink or smoke. And I didn’t want to surround myself with people who did.
Because I believe this: you are who your friends are. That truth is one I know deeply — but it’s for another post.
So despite the loneliness, I stayed true to myself. And one day, I saw someone from my hometown — someone I hadn’t met, but whose posts felt familiar to me. Quiet. Thoughtful. Self-aware. Like maybe they were someone I could connect with.
One day, by chance, I saw them near my department. I walked up, awkward and hopeful, and invited them for coffee. They were with their friends, and they declined.
I felt ashamed. Embarrassed. What was I thinking?
So I let it go.
Almost a year later, I saw one of their posts on Facebook. I commented honestly — just a quiet thought. And for some reason, that comment started a conversation. That conversation became a friendship.
And that friendship is still alive 14 years later.
Letting Go Isn’t Giving Up — It’s Trusting What’s Meant to Be
When I look back, I see the same pattern:
I tried. I let go. Life did the rest.
Maybe not instantly. Maybe not the way I imagined. But it happened.
People might ask — why reflect so deeply on a friendship?
Some friendships aren’t just connections — they’re alignment. They remind you of who you are. They reflect your values back to you. And when they arrive at the right moment, they feel like proof that what’s meant for you won’t pass you by.
As Paulo Coelho once wrote, “When you want something, all the universe conspires in helping you to achieve it.”
But the deeper truth might be this: when something is truly aligned with your soul, it finds its way to you — in its own time.
“What’s meant for you will find you, even if it has to move mountains to get there.” — this old saying has stayed with me. And this friendship became my reminder that the right things don’t always come quickly — they come quietly, and they come back when they’re real.
It was one of those rare things that proves — if something is meant to be, it will come back.
If not, let it go with peace.
Remembering What I Already Knew
Now, years later, I’m writing about this not to share a lesson, but to remind myself.
We don’t always need to learn something new.
Sometimes, we just need to remember what we already knew.
This is my quiet rule. My first philosophy. It has helped me before, and it’s helping me again now.
If it’s meant to be, it will be — a belief that echoes even in modern psychology’s understanding of control and surrender [source].
Maybe it will mean something to you too.
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