Don't be iron, be still, and never trust your fears 4, 3, 2, 1...
"They don't know your strength" repeated boldly by Anna Atsu
For a big chunk of my life, I considered myself unlucky. The timing didn't always play as orchestrated. I've done most things in my life at my tempo, and as you already know, my dancing tempo is not advanced, not very coordinated either. I drink, observe, and listen slowly—not reluctantly. I do things differently; I often start where others consider it to be 'not in order,' unbalanced, and not as planned as it should be.
Embarrassment should be my closest enemy, but no, it's not.
Embarrassment should probably be my closest ally, but I repeat, it's not.
Our weaknesses are our strengths. I've never repeated a lesson, a school year, or someone’s advice as it truly was said. Yesterday, I should have felt like an unfortunate protagonist in a drama. My writing also has a tempo of a leisurely shuffle. I sip my drink, observe the world, and listen slowly—not out of reluctance, but because that's just how I roll. I know that time is precious, short and limited, but I miss conversing, so I write.
And you guessed it right. I roll with whatever the day throws my way. But here's the kicker – I often start from the end. Blame me for an approach that doesn't align with 'orderly expectations.' Blame my lesson plan and my specific way of dealing with any matter of state. But I have to start with a book, so let's dive into the last lesson.
"Monday morning. I know something is up when I first step into Williamson. Folks are quiet as hell. Well, whispering really, in little huddles in the halls and the atrium, like they're discussing plays during a basketball game."
This is how the 11th chapter of The Hate U Give kicked off the last lesson, the passage we endearingly call "periods" in many schools. Pardon the feminine, bloody connotation; I have no idea who came up with this name, but I'm pretty sure it was a man, maybe with some connection to Mendeleyev, the orderly author of the periodic table I will refer to lastly. I firmly believe chemistry and beauty are mainly female for the same reason.
Where my day truly began was kind of silly but profound in meaning. I posted a photo of a green insect showcasing modern beauty standards and, with my green silliness, captioned it something like "I think I am a perfect matching description." Of course, it wasn't a planned thought. How could I know that Iris Irumva would check my profile that same evening? Read the book, and you'll understand why my silliness should embarrass me. But now, I feel obliged to at least mention her, not for my favorite green dresses of hers or her immense beauty and female charm, but for her truly admirable work, which I follow as much as her green dresses.
Lead Your Way Up is a practical guide to outstanding leadership, whether you're a newbie in the corporate world, stuck in your career, or just wanting to shake things up. Bursting with invaluable life and career lessons, Iris Irumva spills the untold secrets of leadership you need to become a person of influence. From adopting a leader's mindset and leading yourself first to leading others, it's a source of hope to navigate setbacks with unwavering grace, unlock untapped inner power, and build resilience muscles for a lucrative career and leadership success.
And, without cracking a joke, as they say, behind every great woman, a man is working for her success. In this case, it proves to be right. "For aspiring and established leaders, this book will be a source of inspiration and encouragement to relentlessly pursue nothing short of greatness," he wrote.
“Never trust your fears. They don’t know your strength,” wrote Iris on her post with a beautiful green dress on the 18th of January. I mentioned her dress in a conversation with a green lover after coming back from a large, beautiful, not-as-vibrant-at-this-time-of-the-year garden, with a silver chain ready to untangle. I untangle only while conversing; I tangle in writing.
4, 3, 2, 1…
But, hey, Anna, you usually have 5 lessons in a day. Why only 4 numbers? That's right, numbers, just like words, line up to lead my way. Yesterday didn't quite go according to the plan. Such is life – you can't expect everything to follow your orchestrated script. In my case, I take it as it is because one lack brings me compensation in another way. When a lesson doesn't turn out as planned, it's just an opportunity for a phone call to a friend to chat about school matters.
I swim, and you know what they advise around the pool?
“Don’t run”…
Of course, I run; I am the daughter of one who runs marathons and he is one of the speediest in his age category.
“Don’t jump”…
Of course, I jump; I never learned how to dance…
“SUCCESS is not about how fast you run or how high you climb but how well you bounce.” - Bo Hanson (4 x Olympian, Director, and Lead Consultant)
So I jump, and I make the biggest splash ever since I don’t jump on my head in fear that there is hard ground I am not willing to hit. Not with my head, too precious! I jump with my legs first, and since they are quite long, the water splashes long enough to let me “Swim anti-clockwise,” both a need and a want.
Don’t dive…
Yes! I stay away from the ground, I dive. I hold my breath longer underwater than I can in real life because my chest was weakened by numerous chest infections I went through in the past. But I recovered. I always recover, and I never regret a “cold” that leads my way up to any infection, break, or pool.
Embrace the Wisdom of Stillness…
I follow that rule, no chasing after things; they come to me at the right time. Meanwhile, let me share a bit about the "steal" properties… Yes, let's jump to the first Monday’s lesson, forgetting all the noise of the breaks in between.
We are akin to the varied elements on the periodic table.
Metals are malleable,
And don't quite mean “can be beaten into a sheet", hammered or pressed. I mean, shaped without breaking or damaging cracking.
Jewellery, crafted with precision and adorned with precious stones, reminds us that true beauty resides in the malleability of the soul. Like gold, let us be malleable, shaping ourselves into vessels capable of holding the richness of experiences and the depth of wisdom.
Strong,
Pans, used to cook the sustenance of life, highlight the strength needed to endure the fires of existence.
Iron, though strong and steadfast, embodies a rigidity that we should transcend. Instead, let us heed the call to be still. Steel is extremely robust. Some of them are quite soft; that's why they need to be mixed with others, stronger in different areas of expertise.
Speaking of precious metals…Diamonds… These gems formed under immense pressure remind us that strength need not be abrasive. May our strength manifest as serene resilience, capable of withstanding life's pressures while radiating a luminous inner light.
Lustrous,
“The soul is placed in the body like a rough diamond and must be polished, or the luster of it will never appear. The luster of an experience can actually go up with time.” — Daniel Defoe
Solid at room temperature,
You must have a solid foundation if you're going to have a strong superstructure. Rarely do we find people who willingly engage in hard, solid thinking. There is an almost universal quest for easy answers and half-baked solutions. Nothing pains some people more than having to think, I repeat slightly twisted after Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.
Magnanimous people have no vanity; they have no jealousy, and they feed on the true and the solid wherever they find it. And, what is more, they find it everywhere. — Van Wyck Brooks
Solid at room temperature, let us stand firm in our convictions while recognising the transformative power of life's flames. Through trials, may we emerge not as hardened iron but as refined diamonds.
Ductile,
You must be able to be deformed without losing toughness.
High melting and boiling point,
Gold, with its high melting and boiling points, exemplifies the endurance needed to weather the challenges of time. Let our characters be solid, not in stubbornness, but in resilience that withstands life's tests with grace and poise.
Good conductors of heat,
Cables, linking diverse worlds and facilitating the flow of information, symbolise human connections. In our interactions, may we be ductile, allowing thoughts and emotions to flow without resistance. Let the strength of our bonds be tested not by tension but by resilience.
The giant lattice of interconnected lives mirrors the intricate dance of electrons, forever bound by the forces that unite them. In our interconnectedness, may we conduct warmth and kindness, spreading the glow of compassion through the vast expanse of human experience.
Sonorous,
Consider the saxophone, a masterpiece born from the hands of artisans and musicians. Its enchanting melody, resonating through the air, teaches us that brilliance lies not in rigidity but in the capacity to reflect and absorb the myriad hues of life.
And in the silence that follows each note, in the stillness that permeates the air, may our souls be sonorous, resonating with the harmony of existence. Magnetic not in drawing attention, but in the quiet strength that pulls hearts closer, fostering a collective symphony of understanding and empathy.
Magnetic.
Coins, although not as precious as they used to be, only coated with copper these days, are magnetic… With magnetism… Well, add it yourself.
In the grand periodic composition, let us transcend the rigidity of iron. Embrace the wisdom of stillness—be malleable, strong, solid, shiny, ductile, with a high melting and boiling point, good conductors of warmth, sonorous, and magnetic in the silent echoes of our existence.
