Challenge #10 Resilience

Challenge - create 48 cards that could be used as an educational tool in contexts that seek to foster resilience in individuals, families and communities.

Part of my studies for my teaching qualification included reading in the area of resilience.

My working definition is "Resilience is an aggregate of factors including genetics, epigenetics, environment and cognitive skills that allow a person to rebuild with purpose and hope following trauma or adversity."

As one paper said 

“Whether a person hangs tough or gives up in hard times depends on influences at multiple levels, from molecules to neighborhoods.” [1]

If we could understand the nature and the interplay of these factors we may be able to make ourselves, or those around us, better able to endure the inevitable trouble which must come to us all at some point.

There are risk factors, protective factors and strategies to enhance resilience.  Some of these are related to an individual, some to a family and others to a community.  I developed a database that had over 250 such items.  There was a lot of overlap as I would record the same trait for each reference in which it appeared.  It is to this resource that I want to return, to tidy up my learning so that I can share it.  It is one thing to pass a subject, it is something else to offer a useful resource to the world.

I'm not a psychologist or a mental health professional, but some of my friends are ... I would welcome the opportunity to co-lab on this.

[1] Southwick, S.M. & Charney, D.S. (2013). Ready for anything. Scientific American Mind. July/August 2013, 32-41.

Books and Identity

Challenge #1 get rid of 48 book - exceeded ... I'm aiming for 96 now ;-)
   The blog Nourishing minimalism made this comment ... "Decluttering books can be especially difficult because often times our identities are bound to what we read — or what we plan to read someday."  The blog Becoming Peculiar had a similar message "I am a pretentious douche who hangs onto material possessions because I derive my self-worth from them."
   For a long time I have had a copy of Satre's Being and Nothingness.  I tell this story "I read the first 48 pages six times and still didn't understand what he was saying."  I have said goodbye to that book this cull.  It sat on my shelf for over a decade because I thought it made me look smart.  Even though I would happily tell the above story that made me look dumb.  In fact I probably needed to tell the "I'm dumb" story in order to make a visitor notice the "I'm smart" book. Go figure.
   I have culled a stack of theological dictionaries from my library. They were attached to my life as a pastor and an Old Testament Lecturer; both careers to which I am unlikely to return. Even if I did return, the works may be too out of date by the time I did, or available electronically. Letting go of those books and that identity has been more cathartic than I expected and perhaps a little less grief inducing than I feared.
   Farewelling of these books was assisted by the  amazing social media skills of my wife who sold them for $48 on facebook in about 15 minutes.  And yes that $48 went to charity to support TEAR's relief efforts after the Nepal earthquake (hence the image at the top of this post).  Here is a link if you feel inspired.