‘Blessed are the hearts that can bend; for they shall never be broken.’ – Albert Camus
‘In a violent storm, the mighty oak tree stands tall and rigid, fighting the wind with all its strength. However, because the oak tree refuses to yield with the wind, it is eventually uprooted and broken.
In contrast, the slender willow tree or the strong bamboo learns to sway with the wind. Each time it bends with the force of the wind rather than resisting it, the willow and the bamboo remain unharmed and intact, once the storm passes.’
After travelling to Japan in April last year, I was fascinated by the stories about the strength and the flexibility of bamboo, and as I reflected on this in my own life, I understood how important it is for me too, to create adaptability when I am faced with adversity.
Bamboo is a, fast-growing grass with a hollow, sectional design which amazingly gives it a higher strength-to-weight ratio than many materials, including steel and concrete. And yet, it is soft to touch, flexible and is a renewable alternative to any wood!
So I contemplated, what attributes does Bamboo have to be able to move and bend with the challenges and adversities of life?
The bamboo grove is strong and deeply rooted. So I need to practice grounding my energy and being still each day in preparation for the unpredictable storms of life.
After bending in a storm, the stalk of the bamboo has the capacity to return to its original position. So I need to practice being more open, less rigid, or controlling in times of fear and overwhelm, which will allow me to recover more quickly after adversity.
Nature as always, teaches me new ways to respond and to remember; I always have a choice how I will move, adapt, and learn through the changes of life.
LIVING IN THIS MOMENT 
The lessons that unfold are many. Being attuned to them is harder.
I love what you are saying. It really resonates with the universal truth 💞
I hit a button in response and came up with a very different blog and perspective.
Keep sharing the teaching and the universal love, Karen 💝 there are so many ways for souls to be distracted out there. xoxo
Thank you Val. I agree. 🧡
Taking the time to listen deeply, and to trust we have the answers within as we face the chaos, isn’t easy.
I appreciate you being here. 🙏🏻💞
💐🙏🏻💞
Thanks for the great analogy and post Karen ! Such a good lesson benefiting us and those with whom we interact.
Thank you Ashley! Nature is my greatest teacher. 🌿☘️
This is beautiful, Karen. Nature really is the best teacher. 🙏🏼 💜
Absolutely! I am so grateful to be her student. 🌿☘️ Thank you Eliza 💞🧡
We used to follow nature in the old days, saw its beauty and adaptability in so many things. Even science has become an ‘us and them’ in everything it does now, not realising it was nature they copied for so long. And now to blame us for nature’s downfall in cutting down every tree and not regrowing on the demand. But after all is said and done, I know who will be building it all from scratch, as she has done for millennia when there is barely anything left.
May we keep following that beauty kind lady, like the love it was built from, that everlasting paradise 🤗❤️🙏
That’s a beautiful reflection of this post Mark. Thank you. 🌿☘️Nature’s amazing ability to renew, adapt, and grow is inspiring, and may we all remember and learn, this same gift and ability is always within us. 🙏🏻🧡💞
Thank you Karen. And yes that was beautifully spoken kind lady, may we indeed find that within us 🤗❤️🙏