Laila

Laila

The Little Goddess of Resilience

By Victoria Grantier Smith

Hi! I’m Laila!

This is my mom. Her name is Mother Earth. She is very beautiful, and very powerful. She will do just about anything to protect her children. She teaches me to honor all beings and cycles. She is magnificent.

This is my dad. His name is Father Time. He is very serious and very wise. He believes that every new day is a gift. He teaches me to respect Mother Earth, and to always be grateful for the time I have. He is inspiring.

When I was very small, I told my Mom and Dad that I would be resilient.

Being resilient is not always easy; so I have to practice it every single day. My skin is thick and bouncy, so that if I feel sad, I can bounce right back up again. Sometimes it is hard, but it is a good thing I am very dedicated. In fact, every being in the whole Universe knows me as, Laila: Expert Resilience Master Extraordinaire.

As a matter of fact, I have a feeling that YOU are an Expert Resilience Master Extraordinaire too! Hey! I have an idea! If you want, I could show you how to find your resilience! Would you like to learn?

Ok but before we start, I like to name 3 things I am grateful for every single day. Gratitude helps me focus on all of the things that make me happy, and focus is very important for our resilience training! Today, I am grateful for my parents, my resilience, and YOU! After I say what I am grateful for, my whole body glows! The best part is, after I’m done, the things I am grateful for glow too! Go ahead, you try it, what are 3 things you are grateful for? You can be grateful for anything; people, animals, things, places, or plants!

OK! Now that our hearts are grateful, let’s grow!

The first important lesson to your resilience is grounding yourself. When you are grounded, your body and soul are strong just like the peaceful sequoia tree. When I need help grounding myself, I sing to my best friend, Beats the Drum!

Beats the Drum loves to help me, and he loves music; so I sing to him like this, “Beats the Drum, bum bum bum, Beats the Drum!”

“Laila, la la la, Laila!”

“Beats the Drum, bum bum bum, Beats the Drum! Will you help me and my new friend root our toes into the sound ground?”

“Sure Laila, la la la, Laila! Get ready to get steady!”

Ok, now you sing like this, “Take my roots, Beats the Drum, bum bum bum, Beats the Drum!” Just like that your roots are planted strong in Mother Earth like the peaceful sequoia tree!

The second lesson of resilience is a mind that is crystal clear like the wings of a beautiful blue butterfly. When my mind feels clear, I don’t feel confused by other people’s words or feelings and I can hear my own authentic truth. My authentic truth makes me resilient to the opinions of others. Whenever I need help clearing my mind and finding my authentic truth, I write to my teacher, Ms. Simone. Ms. Simone lives in the Monarch Library and she loves books and sharing her sage wisdom. When I write to her for help, I say something like this:

Dear Ms. Simone,

My mind is cluttered like the inside of a dark cocoon! Can you please help me open it up so I can hear my truth?

Your Student,

Laila (Expert Resilience Master Extraordinaire)

Ms. Simone opens our minds like hatching butterflies. Once our wings are open, a gentle white waterfall streams right into us! The waterfall always makes me feel so refreshed, from the top of my head, down my whole body, and right through my grounded roots!

“Isn’t it so crisp and refreshing Beats the Drum, bum bum bum, Beats the Drum?”

“Yes, Laila, la la la, Laila, I feel very refreshed and true!”  

OK, now that our minds are open and clear, we will be able to hear our authentic truth crystal clear like the wings of the beautiful blue butterfly.

The third and most important lesson of resilience is unconditional love. I love and accept everybody for who they are, even if they look or seem different than me. When you hold unconditional love in your heart, you will see the world just like my kind and loving Grandma, Mt. Mimi.

Mimi loves love, and she believes there is nothing lovelier than a love poem. When I need help feeling unconditional love, I ask Mimi to fill my heart with her special love-blast poetry.

Whenever you need a love blast from my Mimi, all you have to do is recite this lovely love poem to yourself:

“I love and accept myself, because I am whole and resilient exactly as I am!

I love and accept myself, because I am whole and resilient exactly as I am!

I love and accept myself, because I am whole and resilient exactly as I am!”

Now, we can recite our lovely love poem together!

“I love and accept myself, Laila, Expert Resilience Master Extraordinaire.

I love and accept myself, Beats the Drum, bum bum bum, Beats the Drum.

We love and accept Mother Earth, and all of her beauty and power!

We love and accept Father Time, and all of his cosmic wisdom!

We love and accept our teacher, Ms. Simone who shares her sage teachings of truth!

We love and accept Mimi, the loveliest love mountain!

We love and accept you, exactly as you are! To us, you are perfect, because there is nobody else like you in the whole wide Universe!”