Resilience
Resilience
the capacity to recover quickly from difficulties; toughness.
the ability of a substance or object to spring back into shape; elasticity.
I’ve been contemplating resilience and feeling this quote from the Reverend T.D. Jakes: “You cannot overcome what you will not confront.” To be resilient is to not only overcome challenges, but to rise up, evolve and grow from all our life experiences.
David Whyte writes of resilience as an attribute of the pilgrim (one who journeys into the Mystery, lingering at the edges of the known world, open to adventure and unexpected company):
“One of the central themes of a pilgrimage is internal resilience, the necessity for following a certain star not seen or perceived by anyone else, an internal migration running parallel to the outer road, keeping the journey in the world relevant and true. There is a necessity for hardiness, for shelter, for risk, for companionship, for vulnerability; for creating a more beautiful mind. Above all, a pilgrimage requires us to ask for help, to develop an ability to recognize when it is being offered, and the humor, humility and open hands to receive it.”
This reminds me of a day on the Playa - Burning Man is a pilgrimage for sure and one that makes every traveler more resilient, more radically self-reliant and also profoundly interconnected to community. I was out midday with my Burning Man family (we called ourselves the 5-Star that year) and we were suddenly caught up in a huge dust storm, unable to even see each other as we walked side-by-side, pushing our bikes through the dust. It could have been horrible. Instead, we had the time of our lives, laughing and singing and looking for the sun to guide us home. Eventually the dust cleared around us and we collapsed in mirth and dust-covered bodies.
What if…we come through this more resilient, more in touch with our humanity, more grateful for each other…more intimate, more honest, more real…
May you breathe into spaciousness within and 6 feet around you in all directions. May you remember who you are, no longer forgetting yourself in the peripheral distractions and busyness that we all generate as human beings. May you come to know what you stand for. May you trust yourself and truly come home to yourself. With love. With dignity.
