The Lotus Flower and Resilience

The roots of the Lotus Flower live deep beneath the surface of the water, in mud. The flower submerges every night and, in the morning, the flower must fight its way through the mud, up through the water, to arrive at the surface where it miraculously re-blooms.

In some belief systems the cycle of the lotus represents birth, purity, and creation. To me, the lotus is a symbol of resilience.

I’ve been going through it lately…some muck and mud in my life that I would have preferred to avoid. But alas, the universe had other plans for me.

A past version of me would have engaged in over-eating, over-drinking and my all-time favorite, over shopping!! Woo-hoo!!  “When the going gets tough the tough go shopping!”  (That was Vince Lombardi right??)

The current version of me has SO MANY MORE TOOLS and, aside from tools, SELF-RESPECT.

I know my worth and my value in this world. I CHOOSE to take care of me.

This choice, my friends, is a sign of resilience.

I prioritized sleep, and when I was having trouble sleeping, I exercised acceptance and kept on prioritizing sleep! I continued to exercise. Ever notice when the going gets tough exercise goes first? Not anymore. Maybe I exercised for less time or took a shorter walk, but, I got a few minutes in every day. When I didn’t feel like cooking, instead of face planting into a pizza, I bought something both easy to cook AND good for me. Did I buy a sweater? Yes, of course, nobody’s perfect! But I won’t beat myself up over it. I will wear it and let it remind me how far I’ve come (I only bought one sweater not five pairs of shoes!!!).

But you know what? The most important thing? I didn’t blame myself, attack my own self worth or make it about ME. I know the universe is always on my side, conspiring FOR ME.

I’m going through some muck right now. So instead of a pity party, I asked myself:

• What is the lesson? What can I learn from this?
• What powers and gifts have come out of this situation?
• What inspiration has come out of this situation?

One inspiration was to write this blog and, as I began to reflect upon what to write, I got a chance to pat myself on the back for handling the muck in my life like a boss lady instead of a puddle of toddler.

So much of what I have learned about resilience and coping has come from coaching. So, if you are interested, book that free call and let’s get you out of the muck and into the light.

No mud, No lotus.