Something strange happened this afternoon.

I had been out shopping in the morning, and had returned to get on with some work, when all of a sudden, I got the strangest sensation in my tummy.  Don’t worry, I’m not about to divulge the details of any unpleasant digestive problem, although it did feel slightly similar… Have you ever had it, where a ‘bad-feeling’ has just seemed to spring out of nowhere and grab you by the stomach?  Perhaps I have a sixth sense (but unlike the boy in the movie, I lack the benefit of Bruce Willis being around to help), maybe I’d just drank too much coffee in the morning, or maybe it was just…nothing at all.  Either way, it got me thinking about those “unwelcome surprises” that life can throw at us.  You know the ones I mean.  You can be merrily getting by in your life, fulfilling a daily duty or enjoying a pleasant daydream, when all of a sudden you might find out something you don’t want to know, or see something you don’t want to see, and you get that ‘bad-feeling’, and it can then ruin your whole day, without you having a say in it.

There are very few people in the world who can call themselves psychic, and have the ability to predict the future.  For those of us without a crystal ball, life is a mystery and we simply do not know what will happen next.  Things can change – they can do so in a heartbeat, or they can do so over a longer period of time, in a more stealthier fashion.  Unfortunately, we are unable to control what happens with a lot of things.  All the planning in the world cannot prevent inexplicable events.  Sometimes, the hardest thing is knowing what to do next.

But something I’ve realised… is that we can learn to be resilient to these surprises.

Resilience d0es not equate to foregone victory in a future battle, but, in keeping with the fighting analogy, it can be regarded as a ‘suit of armour’.  Resilience makes you stronger, and better equipped for facing things.

What does resilience consist of?

Resilience is a form of certainty which can counteract the ongoing threat of uncertainty by acting as a constant, permanent set of rules which you can swear to yourself that you will keep to, no matter what.  Should things go wrong, you can then depend upon this set of rules to help you deal with the matter.  The rules may vary from person to person.  I’ve decided these are mine:

No Matter What Happens:

• I will keep following my heart.  It might not be as logical as the head, but it adheres to my dreams.
• I will continue to stand by the people who are most important to me, relentlessly.  Unless they take a piss on me or something.
• I will strive to find the best solution for whatever problem I face.
• If there is no solution available, if something is already done, then I will just stand up, and look forward.

This set of rules will be there to give me guidance whenever I need them, and it is the certainty of that, that provides me with some resilience.  It won’t prevent upset, it won’t stop the unwelcome surprises from happening, but it will give me the direction I’ll need to cope with it if something goes wrong.  Do it, make your own set of rules!  Think about whats important to you, and vow to hold onto it or stick to it, whatever happens. Do with an ‘ooh!’, DOOO IT!

Meanwhile, some shorts for you…

Stupid moment of the week:  “Sorry, we’re going to have to leave, we didn’t realise how fishy it was going to be in here”    said a friend to the waitor, as she and I decided to leave a restaurant after sitting down and looking at the menu.  I guess we should have known better, it being a fish restaurant, in a seaside town famous for… seafood… and all.

Discovery-from-unintentional-eavesdropping-of-the-day:  “Vanessa went with them to the Carvery, but she couldn’t find anything that she could eat, because she is a vegetarian”,explained a lady to her companion, who were walking in front of me in at an exceptionally slow pace in town…  One wonders why Vanessa went to a carvery in the first place, if she’s a vegetarian, but alas, I will never find out.

Epiphany of the Day:  I seem to write about food an awful lot on this.  Can anyone say, ‘dinnertime’?

Loves.

Song of the Day: The Drums – Book of Stories

Bouncy indie-pop with a 1980’s feel from Brooklyn, NY.