Resilience: My weakness is my strength....my strength is my weakness
Resilience: My weakness is my strength....my strength is my weakness
by
L.T. Force, Ph.D.
Gerontologist
Life is an interesting event....full of triumphs, challenges, defeats and more triumphs.
As a species we were created to survive. We were created to succeed. We were created to thrive. I saw an interesting bumper sticker once - that I had on my car for a couple of years. It read: “In the beginning God created evolution.” For me, that said it all. I was raised in a
religious belief that pointed to the existence of God. I was also raised in an academic arena that acknowledged the existence of evolution. That bumper sticker brought together
contrasting views....blending together the strengths of both perspectives. It was a “win...win!” I like those types of outcomes.
And now we focus on the human condition. There isn’t a day that goes by - for all of us - where we are engaged in positive thoughts....and there isn’t a day that goes by that we aren’t
engaged in negative thoughts....it’s part of the human condition. Today, you can’t get through a day without seeing or hearing about the tools, resources and beneficial exercises associated with the practice of: “Mindfulness”. And what is really being said about these practices?
The take away is: “there are mental strategies and physical practices that you can
immediately use to reduce stress, reduce anxiety and increase the sense of well being....you just have to practice them”. Sounds easy....but as anyone knows that has
implemented a Mindfulness Practice....”it takes strength, persistent and consistency to overcome the weaknesses of the mind....it’s part of the human condition”.
As with building resiliency: ”it takes strength to overcome the weakness associated with our own perception of who we are. The irony is....if we didn’t have weaknesses....we wouldn’t know, feel, experience or appreciate our strengths”. As we blend the perceptions of these
paradigms of: “strength and weakness” and “weakness and strength” we build resilience”.
The definition of “resilience”:
re·sil·ience
/rəˈzilyəns/
noun
noun: resilience; noun: resiliency; plural noun: resiliencies
the capacity to recover quickly from difficulties; toughness."the often remarkable resilience of so many British institutions"
the ability of a substance or object to spring back into shape....elasticity
And that is what resilience is: the ability to bounce back....the ability to move forward....the
ability to garner strength from our weaknesses....the ability to blend differences....to build a solid foundation....and a strong sense of self. Just like the relationship between: “the
recognition of the existence of God....and the existence of evolution” - we find: the same
synergy between: “weakness and strength” and “strength and weakness” - they can coexist....they need to coexist....their combined presence....solidifies and adds value to their existence.
How does this relate to the rhythm of our daily lives? Think about it....what would we be - if we didn’t have weaknesses - we would be perfect (in our own mind) and that would never be. “We need our weaknesses to have the ability to experience our strengths”. In the quiet of the
moment: “as you are practicing the focus of Mindfulness…. take the moment….breathe in and out….and take the opportunity to acknowledge and thank your weaknesses for being present….because without them - there would be no strengths…and there would be no you….there would be no resilience”.
