On Resilience

We are thankful for these wise, inspiring words from our friend Presbytera Stacey Dorrance, co-creator of Six Weeks to Sanity and this week’s guest blogger.

Last Thursday afternoon, I was admiring my backyard. Everything was thriving. The garden was heavy laden. My flower pots were exquisite. My front garden beds filled with color. The next morning, I was to fly to Boston to surprise my daughter for her 30 th birthday. Suddenly, I felt a chilling wind. I looked up and immediately knew a terrible storm was brewing. The trees started thrashing, and the sky turned dark. Within three minutes, the rain started pelting…then came the hail…not very large, but unmistakably destructive. I ran around frantically, seeing what I could do…what might be exposed…what might be destroyed. It was too late. Within 20 minutes, my entire yard was shredded. My deciduous trees lost seventy percent of their leaves. Every flower in every pot and garden bed was destroyed. My four garden beds, brimming with tomatoes, zucchinis, peppers, and cucumbers, were demolished. To think I had complained that there were too many zucchinis! Now, there were none. We have filled six large barrels of plant material, and I suspect there are three more up on the hill that we haven’t even addressed.

Resilience. A powerful word. It is the ability to adapt well and recover quickly from tough times, stress or major life changes. St. Paul says, “We are afflicted in every way, but not crushed; perplexed, but not driven to despair.” (2 Cor. 4:8) He certainly was familiar with pain and suffering but never defeated by it. He knew that the God of the universe created us and loves us. He sacrificed His life for us, granting us eternal life with Him. For nothing can separate us from the love of Christ…neither life, nor death, nor principalities, things present nor things to come. The first thing that came to my mind after the storm were the words of my lovely Greek aunt who said, “Thank God no one died.” In Greek we say, “Thank God it wasn’t worse.”

When I contemplate my grandparents’ lives, I know the hardships they endured. Starving at the hands of their enemy in war-torn Greece. Losing siblings to illness early in life. Coming to an unknown nation and making a life against all odds. There was financial uncertainty, bigotry, loneliness, physical labor. What they endured! And what did they learn? Perseverance, resourcefulness, patience, gratitude, sacrifice and dependence upon God. The understanding that life would not always be easy. And here we are…their descendants. Our lives are extraordinarily convenient. We have grocery delivery, online shopping, entertainment on demand, appliances and the internet. These are blessings! But we need to ask ourselves, is convenience weakening or strengthening us? Are we easily frustrated? Flying off the handle at a driver on the road? More concerned about what’s on Netflix than how our neighbor is faring?

How do we grow in resilience?

We can practice resilience during ordinary life in small ways, like doing something that needs to be done when we don’t feel like it. Keeping a commitment. Waiting patiently. Exercising when we’d rather watch TV. Cooking instead of choosing convenience. Living within a budget. Praying. Apologizing. Forgiving. Allowing our kids to struggle without immediately rescuing them. Learning something difficult. Resilience is saying, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” (1Phil. 4:13)

On September 15th, I will again offer my eight-week course called ‘Our Home as Sanctuary.’ (www.OurHomeAsSanctuary.com) I will present Orthodox Christian teachings on Prayer, Love, Order, and Beauty, and how we may bring these into our home. Life is difficult, and many of us struggle. Raising a family is challenging. Eating healthfully takes time. Prayer, order, and cleanliness are difficult to attain in our home. Yet, this is our calling as Christian Homemakers. May we journey together and learn how to serve our families and live a life fully in Christ in our own homes, with His help. We will make our ‘Yiayias’ proud!