In the last couple of years, many places around the world have been hit with some pretty bad natural disasters. Hurricanes, earthquakes and volcanoes take their toll on homes and possessions leaving many homeless and without material resources. National economies are in turmoil, leaving a lot of folks wondering about their financial futures. The toll on human life and spirit can sometimes be unbearable.
 
While it's natural and certainly understandable to feel devastated for a while in situations like this, some folks bounce back far more quickly than others. Instead of sitting around feeling hopeless and helpless, they will pick themselves up and do whatever it takes to start over again. Instead of dwelling on what they've lost and becoming depressed, they will focus their energies on what they still have and what they need to do to recover.
 
Now, this quality of resiliency, or the ability to take a hit and bounce back, has a lot to do with your overall feelings of self-worth. It also has a lot to do with your belief about whether your life is largely controlled by you, or by forces outside yourself. People with high self-esteem and an internal sense of control over their lives just naturally bounce back more quickly than those who feel their lives are controlled by some thing or someone "out there."
 
It is important for you to know that these are qualities that you can develop in yourself and in your children. You can learn to be so resilient, that no personal setback can keep you down for long.