A relatively new colleague commented to me after a meeting that she found me to be upbeat and positive all the time. She said that I always seem so happy. I responded by saying that I was happy. What I should have said was that I am resilient.The American Century dictionary defines resilient as, “readily recovering from a setback”. Every morning I wake up and listen to the news and what I hear feels like a setback to me, but somehow by the time I get to work, I am genuinely energized and enthusiastic about the day’s work that lies ahead.
I attribute my happy disposition to a few routines I’ve stumbled across. I start preparing for the work week on Sunday afternoon by grocery shopping, washing my hair, getting my nails done, a facial, having my car washed, and cooking for Monday-Wednesday. Sunday evening, I watch my favorite television shows and relax.
I wake up at about 4am without fail and turn on C-Span or CNN or MSNBC and after the bad news in bed, I head straight to the garage to exercise. I continue with the news while working out on the treadmill and doing my weights and floor exercises for about 45 minutes. After that, I take myself to my backyard and do a little meditative gardening for about 15 minutes. That is followed by a great breakfast consisting of my bullet shake (berries, Greek yogurt, spinach, a little bit of orange juice and water) along with a protein (egg or sausage). I sip a bit of the coffee from my travel mug and then head for the shower. I pamper myself by only using heavily scented large bars of soaps.
For me, getting dressed each weekday is akin to a child playing dress up. At this particular stage in my life, I’m thankful to be in the position to have accumulated all the clothes, shoes, scarves, purses, phone covers, jewelry and make up I want. And honesty, the collection keeps growing. But I do give a lot away and I only buy on sale or clearance. I have a good time listening to the CBS Morning Talk Show while getting dressed.
It helps that my drive to work is a traffic-free six minute commute on most days. I recall those hour long commutes to the valley in stop and go traffic and I’m grateful those days are behind me. Although, I would probably use that time listening to audio books if I had a longer commute. My short commute is a perfect prayer time for loved ones and friends and for wisdom to face each challenge and opportunity the day will present.
I spend the first few minutes of the morning at work visiting with my delightful colleagues and sipping the rest of my coffee. By then, I am ready for whatever the day has in store. Sometimes the days are tough, long, challenging, or fun. They are always busy and I return home exhausted and thankful that I already cooked. I don’t read work emails anymore at night but I do watch the news until 8pm. During that time I might contact lawmakers or the White House. But after 8pm, I relax and do something I enjoy–read, budget, shop online, clean something, or play a game on my phone. I’m especially fond of Spider Solitary, Word Cookies, and Bejeweled.
The point is, we are living in stressful times. People in this nation and around the world are hurting and I feel the pressure everyday to make a difference. I do my part in the ways I know how. But if I only focus on the painful hardships all around and hard work and effort it takes to fight for a better world, then I would burn out. I’m a sympathetic person and easily overwhelmed by the pain of others. I have experienced actual physical sympathy pains. I’ve learned to recognize that tendency and those have stopped, but not my heartache.
I’m thankful that I’ve found the few things that replenish my spirit and allow me to continue with a smile on my face and a spring in my step. I’ve found the secret to my own resilience.