A friend suggested that I do a blog on, why do bad things happen to good people?. Initially, I didn’t want to. Why? Because it has no good answer. But, I changed my mind, not because I have an answer, but I surmised It might be fun to research all the philosophical ideas that people come up with. So here is a story. The story of Alex.

The Day Everything Went Wrong.

See how many thoughts, have gone through your own minds, when everything goes wrong.

On a Tuesday, which already felt suspicious, a good person named Alex woke up early to help a neighbor, recycle correctly, and text their mom back before being reminded. This is important, because by noon, everything went wrong anyway. First, Alex slipped on a wet sidewalk and spilled coffee on their only clean shirt. “Randomness,” said the Universe, shrugging.
“I didn’t see your moral file. I just enforce gravity. ”Alex sighed but kept going.At work, a coworker took credit for Alex’s idea. Free Will leaned in, whispering, “I gave them a choice. They chose chaos. “I could revoke that privilege,” the Universe muttered.
“No,” said Free Will. “We tried that once. Didn’t go well. ”Alex swallowed their frustration and didn’t retaliate. Somewhere nearby, Character Development rubbed its hands together like a personal trainer.
“Excellent form. This is building resilience.” “Please stop saying that,” Alex thought. Then the phone rang. A loved one was sick. Badly. Alex sat down on the curb, stunned. “There is a reason,” said The Mysterious Plan, cloaked and unhelpful.
“You simply cannot know it yet. ”Alex looked up. “That feels… insufficient.” “Yes,” said the Plan. “That is part of it. ”Soul-Making knelt beside Alex.
“Who you become next matters more than what happens now. ”Alex didn’t feel particularly soulful. Mostly tired. Across the street, Karma flipped through a massive ledger.
“This doesn’t look earned,” Karma admitted.
“Sometimes the balance sheet runs long. Very long.” Alex laughed weakly. “Great. So, I’ll check back in another lifetime?” Karma nodded apologetically. As the afternoon dragged on, Alex noticed something strange. The neighbor Alex had helped that morning came by with clean clothes.
The coworker who stole the idea avoided eye contact, clearly not sleeping well.
A stranger sat beside Alex on the curb and said, “This happened to me once too. ”Empathy quietly took notes. Statistics cleared its throat.
“With this many humans and this many Tuesdays, someone had to have today.
Today, unfortunately, was yours .” Alex stared at the ground. “So what did I do wrong?” Alex asked. Existentialism answered, blunt and honest.
“Nothing. And also, you decide what happens next. ”The Universe checked its watch. “I should clarify something,” it said.
“Life is not a morality vending machine. You do not insert goodness and receive immunity ” Alex stood up slowly. Their shirt was still stained. Their heart was heavy. Nothing was magically fixed .But ,Alex chose, again, to be kind. Not because it worked.
Not because it was rewarded.
But because it mattered.

Free Will smiled.
Empathy grew stronger.
Character Development took a victory lap.
Randomness prepared another Tuesday.

And the Universe, indifferent but not entirely cruel, allowed Alex one small mercy. Tomorrow hadn’t happened yet.