Mystery of Life: Part 1

Ever wonder why certain things in life unfold the way they do?  Most of us do every day.  For some they say that it is a Divine being of some form, for me, it's just the way life is.  We can plan, prepare and take every precaution in life that we can possibly imagine to achieve a desired outcome, but does any of it really help?  Or are we on a pre-destined path that despite our greatest efforts will end up with the same result?  I believe that we really have a choice in life.  If we are confronted with an obstacle in our path do we just resolve to say it is what it is, or do we try to find a way around it?  Now don't misunderstand what I'm trying to convey here, there ARE things in life that are beyond our control.  It's what we learn from our obstacles and how we apply it to future obstacles to come that is our greatest preparation in life.  We can overcome anything that life throws at us as long as we take what we've learned from past experiences and apply it to our new ones.  This is how we maintain free-will and choice in our individual lives.