Resilience
There are many ways to build resilience to the experiences that leave us under-resourced. Counselling certainly forms part of the picture but there are many other ways to also build up resilience if you are feeling overwhelmed, tired, sad, lonely or under-resourced.
Building on the earth element mentioned on the Rest page, nurturing acts of kindness towards yourself may just change your life. It’s really easy to forget kindness in a world that does not always seem kind. Small acts that add up to change include:
co-creation in community spaces
talking kindly to yourself
waking up and appreciating yourself - even if it’s just one thing
shouldering each other in support
listening and sharing for the good of the community
asking for help - this seemingly simple (but in practice often very challenging) act can be radical in this society
get to know yourself a little more
weaving in small rituals to your day - lighting a candle when you bathe, slowly supping a cup of tea without a screen, spending 5 minutes a day just being outside in silence, journaling, flower arranging… whatever you feel you can and would like
“Tell me, what is it you plan to do
with your one wild and precious life?”
I love this quote from Mary Oliver’s poem The Summer Day. In it she isn’t judging our choices or the fact that we must live our best lives at every given opportunity, no, she is observing the wild around her. Our lives are precious and finding a path, an act, a moment of joy, calm, sparkle, authenticity, is the essence. Resilience may build in ways that you know deep down, even if they are tucked away for now.
