Survivors in Haiti
A Gift from the Human Spirit
This morning I woke from a sound sleep with one word blazing across my thoughts: ‘Resilience’.
Perhaps it is because I sat in tears last night watching the news coverage of the devastation in Haiti. Perhaps it is because I sat in wonder watching as amid the crumbled buildings and loss of countless lives, there were crowds of people walking in the streets together chanting hymns. Perhaps it is because around the desparation and gangs yielding machetes there continue to be survival stories. I sat in wonder watching the human spirit rebound.
According to the American Heritage Dictonairy, ‘resilience’ is described as: “1. The ability to recover quickly from illness, change, or misfortune, buoyancy.”
Within moments of the earthquake in Haiti, there was resilience to be found as strangers helped strangers. The resilience continues as the country and the world reaches out to help those in need.
In our travels to Kenya last summer we witnessed first hand this spirit of resilience with the students, adults and children. (www.letyourlifespeakfoundation.org) Then too I pondered this spirit as we worked with individuals that were striving for better lives despite the incredible odds against them. There spirit would ultimately move them to success.
How does one recover amid such hardship? How does one see beyond their immediate world to strive for their desire for a better life? How does one overcome incredible odds to live a life of success? RESILIENCE!
We have only to embrace this gift from the human spirit we have all been given. We can choose to become so absorbed in our problems that we will continue to suffer, or we can embrace the spirit of resilience and realize that we have the ‘ability to recover quickly’ and reach our dreams.
When in doubt, look around you. When faced with fear of possible hardship ahead, look around you. When overwhelmed with sadness, look for moments of happiness. The gift of the spirit of resilience is all around us! It is inside us! It is to be shared with others!
Today I am grateful for the remarkability of resiliency. It allows us to recover and grow stronger! It allows us to share the spirt with others. Today I am grateful for the gift from the human spirit that will aid the people of Haiti and others in need around the world.
