MYTH: Resilience is about suffering
MYTH BUST: Resilience is about embracing growth
Resilience – 1. the capacity to recover quickly from difficulties, toughness
2. the ability of a substance or object to spring back into shape; elasticity.
If asked ‘What is resilience?’ what would be your first response? Perhaps that resilience is the ability to get back up when knocked down, or to cope with challenges when stretched, of course. However, as we take a moment to feel into this energy, we may discover quite a treasure that exists within all of creation. The plant kingdom, the animal kingdom and the human kingdom all hold resilience in potential.
The initial reflection may be on overcoming or achieving success through physical challenges, for instance an athlete who overcomes an injury to compete once again or one who survives an acute illness to return to a normal life. We see inspiring examples of such resilience in the world every day.
There are also those who come through huge emotional and mental challenges that can range through the spectrum of human stress, heartbreak and trauma to climb out of what can feel like a pretty dark place in moments to regain a degree of peace within once again while having gained a degree of wisdom from the experience. These make wonderful mentors as they share from their heart’s experience.
Resilience actually draws upon courage, empathy and the will to engage more with life, to rise and stand for something greater than self as those who inspire us have done and the more we choose to acknowledge and access it, the greater lovers of life we become.
Take a moment, breathe and open to your heart showing you at least one example, or more, of your own resilience, acknowledge it and know it is within you.
Lorraine Town
