We Were Not Born Just to Survive

 

We Were Not Born Just to Survive

Marc Reflects

I have come to believe that many of us—especially in places where struggle is normalized—are trained to aim low, not out of laziness, but out of necessity. We survive because survival is the immediate task, not because it is the full story of what we were meant to be.

I’ve seen this pattern in the lives of youth who hustle daily with no margin for rest, in mothers who stretch every coin and every prayer, in children raised to be quiet, respectful, and unquestioning—because questioning hunger, rent, or pain feels like complaining against life itself.

But what if we pause and ask: Were we really born just to survive?


This reflection is not just about me. It’s about us—those of us renting dreams, raising children in scarcity, starting businesses with zero capital, or carrying childhood wounds like invisible luggage. I write this for the ones who are tired of simply making it through and feel the ache of wanting more.

The Poverty of Low Expectations

Where I come from, many young people are told early on not to expect too much. Finish school. Get any job. Stay out of trouble. Rent somewhere modest. Send money home. Repeat.

Dreams are often viewed as luxury items: impractical, expensive, and risky. Wanting more than survival—more than shelter, more than bread—is sometimes interpreted as arrogance or ungratefulness. And so we grow into adults who fear asking ourselves deeper questions.

But I’ve learned that survival is not our ceiling—it’s the floor. It’s where we begin, not where we should stay.

Living only to survive creates a form of emotional numbness. You stop seeing yourself as worthy of joy, creativity, or rest. You begin to accept the minimum—low wages, cramped housing, dysfunctional relationships—as the best you can get. But survival, when prolonged, becomes another form of quiet captivity.

When Survival Becomes a System

Survival is not just a personal struggle—it’s a systemic outcome.

When a person works full-time and still cannot afford dignified housing, that’s not just bad luck. It’s a system designed to extract labor without ensuring livelihood.

When a child with an incarcerated parent is never offered psychosocial support, that’s not an oversight. It’s a failure to imagine their healing as a societal priority.

When talented youth are left to rot in idleness because no one believed they could build or invent or grow, that is not random. It’s the legacy of low investment in our most powerful resource: human potential.

In Rwanda, like in many African countries, the energy of young people is abundant—but the platforms are few. That’s why I’ve come to believe that we must build new paths ourselves, not just wait for inclusion. That’s why I advocate for children’s talent discovery. That’s why I champion the dignity of renters. That’s why I design business models that begin with zero but aim for something.

Beyond the Hustle: A Quiet Rebellion

I know firsthand what it feels like to start from nothing—no capital, no title, no land to inherit. Only a sense of duty, some borrowed faith, and a journal of handwritten dreams.

So I built my “Zero to 2M Plan.” Not as a gimmick, but as a quiet rebellion against the idea that we must have wealth to pursue vision. I wanted to prove, at least to myself, that structure, grit, and purpose could build something sustainable.

But beyond money, the deeper work is inner. It's about recovering hope. It’s about learning that enoughness is not found in your wallet but in your worth. It’s believing, even quietly, that “more” is not greedy—it’s holy

Creating a Life Worth Living

To live beyond survival is to build a life of meaning, belonging, and purpose. It is to:

  • Raise children with space to imagine, not just obey.
  • Do work that aligns with your soul, not just your debt.
  • Create love that doesn’t just endure, but uplifts.
  • See yourself not as a victim of systems, but a rebuilder of them.

This is not naive. It’s deeply practical. When we move from surviving to thriving, we become more generous, more inventive, and more alive. We create businesses that are human. We build schools that nurture. We lead with compassion. And we stop settling.

 

To Those Still in Survival Mode

If you're reading this while worrying about rent, job security, or your next meal—this is not to shame you. Survival is noble. You are not weak. You are not lazy. You are fighting every day. I see you.

But I also want to remind you that you were not born just for this.
You carry more inside you than anyone has yet seen. You are allowed to dream, to rest, to laugh without guilt, and to plan for more than next week. Your full life is not a privilege—it is your birthright.

A Gentle Revolution

We don’t need to shout to change the world. Sometimes, the revolution begins in quiet decisions:

  • Saying no to things that only drain you.
  • Saying yes to building slowly, sustainably.
  • Refusing to define yourself by your lowest point.
  • Raising children who feel safe enough to ask "why?"

We start small. We plant a garden. We launch a side hustle. We mentor a child. We ask real questions in our communities. We resist the urge to shrink ourselves.

We were not born just to survive.
We were born to live, to create, to restore, and to reflect a bit of God in the way we show up—in homes, in ideas, in how we love one another.

And so, if survival is your current season, I bless it. But I also dare you to imagine: what would your life look like if you believed you were made for more?

Marc Reflects
For the dreamers. For the builders. For the ones who refuse to settle.

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