Resilience

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Alfred Bandura, Resilience

Tea Talk is a meme ‘for heart’s sake,’ says host Ruth at Celebrate Friendship.

Participants get real with how they are feeling and what is on their minds. The objective is to spend a few minutes to inspire the self and others.

Today I’m having iced lemon tea. This fave tea is served on a long, transparent Ging Kilpakreuk glass.

I’m feeling TGIF (thank God it’s Friday). Yes, it’s only Thursday but the recent change in my timetable this term has set my Fridays free.   I am celebrating tomorrow today.

On my mind is the concept of resilience. There is more to my timetable than just Fridays off. Internal politicking at work caused this change which resulted in some burnt bridges.  It was infuriating.  Not long ago though I resolved to be positive in the face of negativity. That no matter how difficult things get, I would endeavor to get over it with the least damage to my emotions. And that includes controlling  wrinkles by staying happy no matter what.

This sort of issue is not really new to me anymore. I exercised resilience with changes that go with shifting courses in grad school, thus TGIF indeed!  A scholar frequently mentioned in Communications analyses has this to say about resilience –

We find that people’s belief about their efficacy affects the sorts of choices they make in very significant ways. Most success requires persistent effort, so low self-efficacy becomes a self- limiting process. In order to succeed people need a sense of self-efficacy, strung together with resilience to meet the inevitable obstacles and inequities of life.

– Alfred Bandura of Social Learning Theory fame

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Amplitude

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Ging Kilpakreuk, Mandarin Oriental, Whittard of Chelsea

It was raining blessings this week. I will be trimming these faves down to five as I write –

i. Church. It was good change to arrive on time, sit on a front pew which I rarely do and more importantly to be immersed in worship.  A friend sang Lord, Make Me an Instrument of Thy Peace with former college mates and I loved listening to the:

• prayer in Thai (no translation)
• children’s story told by Grandma Carmen  (dear lady on a wheelchair)

ii. Lunch.  We then proceeded to an elegant restaurant for physical nourishment. On our table were:

• deep fried sea bass in sweet and sour sauce and fragrant jasmine rice
• coconut milk chicken soup, avocado salad, banoffee cheese cake and iced lemon tea
  

  Ging Kilpakreuk centerpiece

iii. New places to try. They’re fabulous! (read: fine dining) We strolled a bit after lunch and discovered:

• Mandarin Oriental
• Whittard of Chelsea

iv. Tea Talk, a new meme I’m enjoying.  Participants spend brief,  light moments expressing random thoughts, revealing emotions without pressure to explain why, and sharing a quotation. I love this meme because:

• My heart grows stout visiting ladies as charming as Friday’s Fave Five ladies
• I get to admire beautiful tea sets every Thursday

v. Today at work. My new timetable sets my Fridays free from professional duties. Besides that are a few things that make it a nice day:

• fruits instead of fattening foods at a birthday celebration in the office today
• leisure walk by a group of freshmen facebooking under the mango trees

Susanne at Living to Tell the Story hosts Friday’s Fave Five

Realistic reverie

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Anne Bronte, England, Lang & Wise Collector Mug, Scarborough Castle

I’m having hot chocolate with milk in one of my Lang & Wise Collector Mugs (1997, S.B.B. #5).  I purchased it for the rustic charm exuding from The Herb Wagon around it, a painting by Sherri Buck Baldwin.

I’m feeling arcadian. Despite living  in the heart of a sophisticated metropolis,  I am a country girl at heart.  This mug keeps me connected with quaint countryside from time to time.

On my mind is the ballad Scarborough Fair. Herbs written around the mug, parsley, sage, rosemary and thyme… remind me of my first morning in England which was spent visiting Anne Bronte’s grave in Scarborough and exploring the curtain wall around Scarborough Castle.

I leave you with words by Anne Bronte –

“He that dares not grasp the thorn should never crave the rose.”

and back to the present world of work and Facebook, a friend’s shoutout –

“Being smart is cool. But a good heart is better than all the good heads in the world.  Kindness counts!”

Ruth hosts

at Celebrate Friendship

Positive possibilities

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Jean de la Fontaine

I’m having iced full leaf tea. It’s on a plastic glass that, as you can see, Starbucks usually serve cold drinks on.

I’m feeling optimistic.

On my mind is a resolve to always try keeping a positive attitude on what I would rather not face if I had a better choice.  My heart is smiling at impossibilities fading and possibilities zooming in with this  quote I want to share with you –

Man is so made that whenever anything fires his soul, impossibilities vanish.   Jean de la Fontaine

Ruth hosts

Join us at Celebrate Friendship