Dear Reader,
My sister recently started an ezine: Klaen for Courageous Women. Her topic for February is resilience. She definitely is a resilient woman, having faced many challenges in her lifetime.
As a young teacher, she taught math to teenagers. When she fell pregnant with her first child, she and her husband decided that she would be a stay-at-home mom until they started primary school.
But since finances were tight – which is often the case with young couples – she had to figure out a way to earn some income. She managed to do so by offering extra math classes and selling Tupperware.
When their second child went to school, my sister decided to study child psychology, eventually earning her Masters Degree. After working as a psychologist for a while, she started her practice. It went well, except for its toll on her mental health.
I was surprised when she and her husband decided to buy a farm after both children left the house. They soon relocated to Four Flies, a lovely farm in Carolina. Unfortunately, my brother-in-law still had to work in the week as a consultant to help fund all the expenses, leaving my sister to manage the farm. But they did what they had to and loved the farm life.
Disaster struck when my brother-in-law was diagnosed with lung cancer in 2012 and passed away later that year. It left my sister reeling, struggling to cope with the loss of her soulmate and trying to keep the farm going. Sadly, she had to admit defeat, sell the farm and relocate back to the city.
She started working at UNISA, marking student papers, and also helping to write psychology modules for the education department. But since they’ve put so much of their finances into the farm and she was forced to accept less than her proposed selling price, finances were tight again.
It is how she came full circle, back to teaching – this time as a science and math teacher at Prinshof School. As if teaching after so many years wasn’t challenging enough, she also had to learn braille and how to adapt her teaching methods for the visually impaired.
Now nearing retirement age, Klaen for Courageous Women is her business venture to support herself financially during her retirement. As a resilient woman, she knows she is the only one that has the power to get up and carry on when faced with adversity.
Like courage, resilience is not something we see in ourselves while facing adversity, but only in hindsight. For me, resilience means getting up and carrying on, regardless of how hard life gets. It means to keep going, even when you are exhausted and don’t feel like trying anymore. In short, resilience means that you draw on your inner strength and NEVER GIVE UP!
Fortunately, resilience is something you can develop in yourself. Head over to the Klaen magazine to discover 10 ways to be resilient.
Thanks for reading,
Susan
Life Letters 