"Trees look strong compared with the wild reeds in the field.
But when the storm comes the trees are uprooted, whereas
the wild reeds, while moved back and forth by the wind,
remain rooted and are standing up again when the storm has
calmed down.
"Flexibility is a great virtue. When we cling to our own
positions and are not willing to let our hearts be moved
back and forth a little by the ideas or actions of others,
we may easily be broken. Being like wild reeds does not
mean being wishy-washy. It means moving a little with the
winds of the time while remaining solidly anchored in the
ground. A humorless, intense, opinionated rigidity about
current issues might cause these issues to break our spirits
and make us bitter people. Let's be flexible while being
deeply rooted."
- Henri Nouwen, _Bread for the Journey_, Entry for March 16
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