On a palm leaf!

The early morning sight of a pair of Bulbuls perched safely and securely on a palm leaf caught my attention. 

A palm leaf is weak in strength and is prone to sway even in a mild wind. But the Bulbuls appeared comfortable. They turned in all directions to look around. 

Was their strength in the palm leaf or in their ability to fly in case they loose a grip!

I suppose in the flying skill! Instead of fear of falling, it is the thrill of flying which makes a bird a survivor in wind and storm! 

I remember knowing a person who owned a boat and went on short voyages during the weekends on river Thames. He was a good swimmer from childhood and grew up taking sailing lessons. He was a member of yacht club at school and college. 

He kept the boat in good condition. His standard of upkeep was as per the requirements suggested by the manufacturer of the boat he owned.  He was immensely pleased with his boat for the safety standards it had. 

He recalled once about his experience of the river Thames from child hood and readiness to do what was needed in case of an emergency. There were high tides which tossed the boat, but he did not mind that. His familiarity with the river was one source of his strength. 

I wish someone would coin a description for Resilience Quotient. The ability to adjust to adverse circumstances and do the needful as and when it occurred, was his approach.  He did not think about the worst and stay anxious every time he was in the boat. 

When Anna and I were younger we took a road trip to Shillong from Vellore driving a Maruti 800 car. Although we have taken several road trips between Vellore and our cottage near Ernakulum, recently we thought twice about going to Vellore driving. We are older and therefore doubts and questions surface about a 10 hour long road trip. 

I thought about it and realised that instead of hoping to  cover the distance under ten hours, what if I plan to cover the distance in 12 hours or more! Will that reduce the hesitancy to go driving! 

The Resilience Quotient changes with changes in our lives. It is a good practice to reflect on this and discover the inhibitions which make us less enterprising!

I felt encouraged by the two Bulbuls holding on to the palm leaf and swaying in the air, while holding on to it firmly. Its ability to protect itself if blown away from the swaying palm leaf, is its strength. 

Our strength springs from our own understanding of what we are able to do, if something happens contrary to the normal! 

Risk avoidance is not the way forward, but readiness to face the risk !

Life has many more pages to learn from. It is only by engaging the opportunities, those pages would open up before us, to have a larger experience of journeying! 

M.C.Mathew(text and photo)