Reflections on a Resilient Life....Remembering Elizabeth Edwards

"Resilience is accepting your new reality, even if it's less good than the one you had before. You can fight it, you can do nothing but scream about what you've lost, or you can accept that and try to put together something that's good." ~Elizabeth Edwards

A person who is dear to my heart sent this quote along to me and I had to share it. Although I was never fortunate enough to meet Elizabeth Edwards in person, I have thought of her often on my grief journey. I read some of her words about the loss of her own child, and wondered if I would ever be able to find that same grace and serenity in my own life.

She was a woman who lived a life that was imperfect, and messy at times. Her life did not spare her from pain or loss. But she continued to "put together something that's good."

I get up and try to do that every day. Some days, it works, and others, I simply whisper that I will try again tomorrow. Her quote is printed and on the bulletin board in my office. I look at it daily, along with other great thinkers, for inspiration. I look to remind myself that others have found the secret to a happy life, and it is never found in perfection. It is always found in making peace with the imperfections that surround us.

May we all take a moment to read her words today, and know that the resilience that she was able to find and hold on to throughout her rich lifetime also sits within each one of us. To honor her life, and learn from it, let us all make it our job to continue to live a happy life, even when life is difficult. Let us all try, even if it is minute by minute, to put together something that is good.

Sending wishes for comfort and peace to the Edwards family,

Kelly