I hope we are all looking for the positives in our lives.  We should look for every opportunity to feel happiness and peace in our busy schedules. I am convinced that resilient people are those who can find the good in every situation. Resilient people aren’t afraid of making mistakes. They don’t let frustration get in the way of their creativity. They don’t let their weaknesses determine who they are until those weaknesses become their strengths. When criticism comes their way, they don’t use it for an excuse to quit. They dig in and become better because of it. They surely don’t allow negativity to penetrate their souls. Negativity flows off their backs, and they fight their way through it.

Resilience is the ability to bounce back when you have every reason to shut down, but you fight on. When you do poorly on a test or an assignment, you learn from it and do better the next time rather than beating yourself up or quitting. When you serve people and they don’t appreciate you and continue in their same dilemma, you continue to serve them. When you are trying to lead people and affect change, and it doesn’t happen like you expect it to, you get creative and find more effective ways to lead them. When you choose to live in a way that feels right to you and others mock you for it, keep on doing the right thing.  These are examples of being resilient.

The challenge for all of us is to become more resilient. In doing so we have to be careful to not let all of the awards, accolades and pats on the back cause us to settle and be satisfied where we currently stand today. We should use the positives in our lives to fuel and ignite us to greatness. Whether we are students, educators, or parents, we can make our lives better by working to become more resilient when life throws its many challenges our way.

It’s my wish during the holiday season for all to have the best of times with family and loved ones. We are blessed to have freedom, and we are fortunate to have many opportunities for happiness and peace.

Jerre Holmes