Let’s Fortify Our Life Foundations, Together
One of Salt Lake City’s key landmarks, the Salt Lake Temple on Temple Square has a rich history. One of the interesting stories about its construction is told by Dieter F. Uchtdorf. “Not long after arriving in the Salt Lake Valley in 1847, the Latter-day Saints began building their holy temple. They felt they had finally found a place where they could worship God in peace and be free from persecution. However, just as the temple foundation was nearing completion, an army of United States soldiers approached to forcibly install a new governor.
Because Church leaders did not know how hostile the army would be, Brigham Young ordered the Saints to evacuate and bury the temple foundation…Eventually, the danger passed, and the temple foundations were excavated and inspected. It was then that the pioneer builders discovered that some of the original sandstones had cracked, making them unsuitable as a foundation. Consequently, Brigham had them repair the foundation so that it could adequately support the granite walls of the majestic Salt Lake temple.”
At the end of 2019, Church officials closed the temple to once again shore up the foundation by using the latest tools and techniques of science. That reconstruction will continue for four years.
2020 has tested our foundations as we’ve experienced real or psychological losses in all areas of our lives. It has shaken us from our comfortable, take-for-granted lives, and turned them totally upside down. No longer can we assume there will be groceries on the shelves, or that the post office will deliver packages on time. No longer have we been free to travel without worry of health threats. Simple family gatherings carry risk and danger. The unimaginable happened with rioting in the streets where we shop, eat, and work. No longer can we assume all people value character and morals in our leaders or that all people believe in equality and justice for all. No longer can we think life will never end and that there are years to go before saying good-bye to loved ones or to finishing our bucket lists. And in the midst of all this devastating chaos and crisis, pre-covid tragedies of life didn’t miss a beat. Cancer, divorce, accidents, fires, earthquakes, poverty, crime and loneliness continued to rage on.
With these seismic quakes, our personal foundations have been laid open for examination. Maybe you’ve discovered that your life was built on sandstone that easily cracked when under pressure and needs to be rebuilt, or you now see gaps in-between stones that require stronger bonding materials. Maybe you’ve unearthed a firm foundation that has now been weightily tested and found to be solid and true.
The priceless gift of this horrific adversity is the opportunity for all of us to see and examine closely the footings and the foundations upon which our lives are built and make decisions about rebuilding or strengthening them.
The year 2020 exposed both my foundation and my footings. Examination of my foundation found it to be sure and strong and it continues to withstand the shocks and aftershocks. It includes creating a home sanctuary, surrounding myself with communities of caring, savoring nature, perpetually learning, and living within margins of safety with finances and emergency preparations.
Foundations are Built on Footings
Lying under any foundation, however, are footings. Made of concrete with rebar reinforcements, footings support the foundation and keep it from settling. While unseen, footings come first in the construction of any building and ultimately the soundness of the entire structure relies on them.
I discovered that the footings of my life are built on principles of hope and emotional resilience. Examples of these include:
An intention to be accountable rather than a victim in every situation by focusing on what I control and minimize the time I spend on what is out of my control.
Paying close attention to how thoughts, actions, and emotions are connected and checking often to be sure my thoughts are rational and kind.
Faith in God and in an eternal plan that gives my life purpose and explains why bad things happen to good people.
These principles support the foundation upon which my life is built and guide my daily decisions on how to spend resources of time, money, and energy.
While uncovering these footings and foundations, it’s also evident they require constant surveillance and fortification. This comes with self-reflection, perpetual learning, and practicing behaviors that support us in becoming our best selves.
A New Year of Resilience
In 2021, I invite you to join me in fortifying our life footings and foundations. Together we’ll learn the target behaviors of emotional resilience and turn them into habits of resilience, using the latest tools and techniques of science. Through these blog posts, Wise Words (books worth reading), workshops (zoom and in-person), and other resources coming to my website, we’ll transform what we discovered about ourselves in 2020 into long-lasting, life-changing beliefs and behaviors.
Why Build Resilience?
These words by Harry Browne summarize why emotional resilience is so important in our lives. He said, “When you know that you’re capable of dealing with whatever comes, you have the only security the world has to offer.”
Imagine having that mighty confidence every day and role-modeling it to your family as you are confronted with problems, small, big, and super big (pandemics)!! It truly is the footing for a happy and healthy life.
Let’s do this together. Email me with your ideas, suggestions and questions on how I can best support you in becoming resilient in 2021. I’m always available at terria.flint@gmail.com.