Resilency Is More Than A State Of Mind

As I Sit Overlooking The Bay in Kauai, Hawaii; Watching The Surf And Those Not Faint Of Heart Riding It, it crosses my mind that this reservation recluse is far from the haunts where his roots were formed .

Yet, across these waves I see a resiliency that transgresses, time and distance.

As I watch the surfers fall and regain their board, I am amazed at their resiliency. It is there I realize that Resiliency Is More Than A State Of Mind. It Is Action.... It is Surviving.... It is Thriving.... It is Life! It is actively being Oneself; Healthy In Mind, Body and Spirit. It Is Something we Learn as we grow up or We Don't Grow. It is allusive for some and a friend for others...

I Watch The Surfers And I Realize That They Don't Need Someone To Remind Them Life Is Worth Living Large. That it is more than getting up in the morning, putting on two shoes and heading off to work. It is more than back to back commitments or employers who have forgotten what it is like to scratch out a living or to raise a healthy family.

It is more than schedules, meetings and covering ones ass with paper justification. It is more than crises and survival. It is more than staying in bed afraid to get up and out. 

It is about Life. It is about Living.... It is about Living Your Life....!

It is something I see while I look out over the surf.... It is something I saw while I sat the back of a horse overlooking bitterroot flats and sagebrush coulees. It is about attacking life with all you have and being prepared for it...

It is about a wipeout on a big wave and climbing back on the board to assess and ride the next wave... It is about being pitched from a bronc and having the courage to climb back on while knowing the sun is just breaking and there is still a long day ahead. It is about risk. It is about being prepared. It is about doing.

It is about reading your environment and especially, it is about reading yourself.... Then, it is about giving your all to the moment... It is about being mindful. It is about filling your cup so you have something in which to fill others... It is about purpose.. Your purpose and how you go about making your dreams a reality... It is about being actively involved today... Involved today, with you!

As the sun drops into the ocean and the the last surfer kicks the sand, grabs her board and heads back to her jeep, I can't help but see the correlation between what I just experienced and what I learned years ago. Whether or not your sitting in a bunkhouse with an old cowboy, in a group on a recovery unit or listening to the waves break on a sandy beach. The advice is still the same...

Nourish yourself when your are Hungry ... Not just when you are upset or bored.... Eating healthy is vital.

Express yourself when you are Angry, don't react to your disabling emotions... Reactions will drive a negative behavior. Express your feelings... Pay attention to your affect and be congruent with mood, feeling, and behavior... Expressing these feelings will reduce their negative hold.

Be around others when you are Lonely. Isolation is not healthy... Make an attempt to interact with others, even when you don't feel like it... Being around others who are involved with life will rub off on you...

Rest when you are Tired, as sleep is vital to all our functions; mental, physical and spiritual...

HALT...

It was good health advice then. I believe it remains so today. So, Until later ... While Digging sand from crevasses it was never suppose to be, this reservation recluse says....

"Mahalo", and remember that unless you know where you are going; any road will take you there.... Stop!... Listen!... Make a choice! ... I've made mine...... Now go on, make yours....