Oh
definitely I believe in being a self-starter, Carek!
Going after stuff/events/circumstances you are interested in/ you want. There are many times in my life I have been able to do that.
But I also believe sometimes luck is involved as you pursue such things. So it sounds like you had a nice batch of that along with your efforts. Good for you.
But some times things happen, that "perfect storm" of unexpected, multiple seriously upsetting even, damaging events over a few weeks, a few months that can really, really wreck things up for a person.
It can then take sometimes a long time, and a lot of extra effort to regain, rebalance and re-chart a new life after massive changes in circumstances. The kind, like, that send you tumbling from being a middle-class person to being (not talking destitution here) but poor, and with complicating circumstances that can keep you poorer longer than you thought you would be.
That's why i sometimes bristle at Jamilla's comments -seemingly no room for incredible complications.