Sometimes it's the simple stories that get us through ...

[woodsgnome]

Recently I was re-reading a favourite book of mine by deceased Canadian author Richar Wagamese, who lived an orphan-like existence as a child due to cptsd-like environments amongst several foster homes. But a favourite thing for him was to find old Ojibway Indian elders who'd tell him stories, many of which seemed incredibly simple, but which were often sage commentaries on how to live, even one filled with harsh setbacks.

One piece of advice he treasured was from a discussion about 'how to be strong' with an old Ojibway woman. She explained how she saw that what was called 'strength' wasn't what the lad thought.

She told him to : "...be soft, like the grass. You don't need to be hard, like others say. Hard things break. Soft things never do. Be like the grass. It gets stepped on and flattened but regains its shape again once the pressure passes. It is humble, accepting, and soft. That's what makes it strong!"

For me, that puts a lot into a new perspective, allowing space in which to reframe a lot of the hurt, bringing forth our natural resilience.

[rainydiary]

Thank you for sharing this woodsgnome.  I really like the wisdom of being soft like grass.