~:[CH13 - Day 11]:~ Resilience

 
~:[CH13 - Day 11]:~ Resilience

We ran to Brookhaven today and I saw this dandelion. Earlier in the day I saw one outside my door and wanted to take a photo of it, but they mowed the grass and it was gone. Dandelions are interesting because of how they draw people to them, but at the same time, they easily breakdown, but this particular one stood its ground and survived, at least for now. However, as I sat down and had a conversation this evening with someone, we talked about the challenges of life and the emotional strain it has. We often see that standing strong and being resilient is the key, but sometimes when we bottle it all in to look strong, we end up imploding, as we erode from the inside. I know many are facing emotional stress after a chaotic time and I know that we all want to be strong, but we also have to be real. We have to understand that others around us are ready to help, but also ready to relate, as they too are also looking for someone that is also going through what they are. Many times, you don't even see the struggle that people are going through even though they seem to be the one who is the most resilient. As I thought about the dandelion, I also thought of it another way, instead of being the one to stand strong alone, the one that looks like it's been overtaken is actually the one that will grow the most over time. Much like the pappus (florets) of the dandelion, when we allow ourselves to grow and spread ourselves by reaching out to others, we start the process of new growth. Instead of being destroyed, the dandelion is actually making way for a new cluster of dandelions to sprout strong and resilient.