People are sometimes surprised to see how much a piece of wood can be bent without breaking. To which I always say, Watch what a tree does on a windy day. It has learned the secret of strength. When the heavy winds come — and they always do — it yields its proud stance and stoops to a low curve, for a time.
And when the heavy winds stop —and they always do — it springs back and lives to stand proud another day. The willingness to bend — to forgive, to surrender, to be vulnerable, to trust, to act humbly, to have your mind changed, to love when loving is hard, to bow down — is where the true strength is found.