Be Like Water

That is a quote from Bruce Lee. He was teaching his student to be formless, shapeless and adaptable. It is also a lesson in resilience.

Every kid likes to throw stones in a pond to watch the splash and the diverging ripples. The circles expand, but then disappear within seconds. It doesn’t matter how big the rock is, or the size of the disturbance, the water will quickly regain it’s form, stability and calmness.

The pond doesn’t ask when hit with a rock, “Why me? Why can’t that kid throw a rock into some other pond?”, and like water, resilient people have the ability to accept the things they cannot change. With that acceptance comes the calming of the water.

Be like water when hit with the stones that life tosses at you. The concentric circles represent the impact to your soul, mind or other aspects of life. Like the pond though, let the impact dissipate quickly. I’ll admit that it’s easier said than done. All healthy changes are. Everyone has stress in their lives and the sooner you can let go of it the happier you will be.

A river has great strength and power, but it also has flexibility. It bends where the earth bends.

Increasing our acceptance, flexibility and adaptability will increase our resistance to stress, and our ability to bounce back quickly after trauma. Be like water my friend.