Is life so wretched? Isn't it rather your hands which are too small, your vision which is muddled? You are the one who must grow up.

The speaker challenges a reflexive pessimism that blames “life” for suffering, suggesting instead that the problem may lie in the self’s immaturity and limited capacity. “Hands too small” implies inadequate strength or skill to handle what life requires; “vision muddled” points to confused perception and distorted judgment. The concluding imperative—“You are the one who must grow up”—frames hardship as a summons to inner development: expanding one’s competence, clarity, and moral/spiritual stature so that experience becomes bearable and meaningful. In Hammarskjöld’s idiom, this reads as an ascetic, self-scrutinizing call to responsibility rather than complaint.