How to Survive and Thrive through Life's Storms (when it seems like the hits just keep on coming...) Coffee with Colm Episode 204

Where does your head go when you hear the phrase, "The hits just keep on comin'"? Are you at a gig? in a nightclub? Or are you battling hit after hit after hit in your life right now?

A good friend of mine gave me the phrase recently when we were chatting and I smiled when I realized it's multi-faceted use - in her case, the hits just keep on coming referred to blow after blow of a personal and professional nature, seemingly incessant in nature for her at the time.

What's happening for you right now? Are you reeling under blow after blow, hit after hit, barely able to catch your breath, let alone stand your ground?

It will get better, I promise.

To find out why I can say this with confidence, watch the short video, listen to the podcast or read on below...

As I write this I am looking out across Lough Derg on the River Shannon through the mistiness of yet another violent storm; visibility is shockingly, the water is wild and the trees bear witness to the strength of the winds - leaves, twigs and small boughs whip by my window periodically, I can hear the roof creak and windows rattle like they are about to give in. But they won't. How do I know? History.

Storm Jorge (Hor-hay) is raging outside and it is the latest storm to hit Ireland and our largest offshore island, and former fellow EU Member State, Britain; after Storm Dennis a number of weeks ago, Ciara before that which was preceded by Brendan and Atiyah. The storm season in this part of the world runs from September 1st each year and the Met office has given names in advance to an expected 21 storms that could ravage the country. They are usually in alphabetical order and alternate male and female. The list for this season includes:

• Atiyah
• Brendan
• Ciara
• Dennis
• Jorge (Hor-hay was thrown in here because it was named first by the Spanish weather service)

The following name are as yet unused this storm season:

• Ellen
• Francis
• Gerda
• Hugh
• Iris
• Jan
• Kitty
• Liam
• Maura
• Noah
• Olivia
• Piet
• Roisin
• Samir
• Tara
• Vince
• Willow

One interesting fact as to why storms are given names is to allow them appear more understandable and less threatening; the names are issued to humanize the weather events and make them more understandable to members of the public.

The key here is to understand that the Met Office is expecting storms and you and I should too.

So why am I discussing storms at all? Because they pass, my friend, they pass. Storms hit and then retreat (or wear themselves out) and we often see sunshine after rain (great Elkie Brooks song right there), so if you are in a period where you are feeling the hits just keep on coming, know they too will stop. Dig deep and remember back to a time when there was calm in your life; know, remember, that those periods exist too and that there are more on their way to you, days of sunlit glades and bubbling brooks when you will find it hard to remember Storm Jorge and the damage it caused.

Look what happened Australia in very recent times - catastrophic bush fires that appeared to destroy everything in their path, but despite the violence and the devastation and the regrettable loss of life, life itself, nature is already making a comeback and you can too.

I read a lovely story recently about a little girl who, as an adult, remembered visits with her granny. At dinner time the granny would tell her to keep her fork as she cleared away the dinner plates - when the little girl asked "Why?" the granny said, "Dessert my dear, dessert - the best is yet to come."

Stop, rest, catch your breath, know the best is yet to come, take steps to get strong mentally, physically, emotionally, spiritually and arise from the ashes like a phoenix and go again. Scars can be beautiful things because they tell of a life lived.

Here's to the next phase... keep your fork; the best is yet to come.

END.

Thanks for thinking with me.

Yours truly.

Colm

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FANCY A COFFEE WITH COLM in 'real'? I have been creating free weekly content for over three years now and am very happy to have the opportunity to do so. That said, if you enjoy my work, perhaps you might consider buying me the odd coffee to help defray the hidden costs around sourcing, creating, editing, uploading and sharing? Some pretty cool rewards await those who do! Check out my PATREON page here.

MORE: Did you enjoy that? Fancy a sip of some of my recent “Coffee with Colm” Blog posts:

• Ep 203 The Story of Little Tomi Reihental, Holocaust Survivor - click here
• Ep 202 Sing along... "I closed my eyes, drew back the curtain, to see for certain, what I thought I knew..." Lessons in resilience from a West End Musical - click here.
• Ep 201 Make Haste Slowly - Four Lessons we can learn from the first successful South Pole Expedition - click here.

BONUS: My infamous Man on the Train story...

• The ‘Man on the Train’ story. How my fortunes changed through a seemingly random (is there any such thing?) meeting – click here.

FREE AUDIO BOOK. If would like a complimentary copy of my book “Feeding Johnny – How to Build a Business Despite the Roadblocks” in audio, narrated by Yours Truly so you get all the nuances, feel free to grab one here.

LINKEDIN. Perhaps the thing to do right now is simply to hook up professionally on LinkedIn – if that’s of interest, click here.