One of the highlights of our South Dakota vacation was visiting the Badlands. I’m not sure what I was expecting but it was an incredible experience.
I was mesmerized by the different formations that were created by nature and was specifically intrigued by the various layers of color on the rock structures, which I learned are comprised of both soft and hard material. With colors ranging from white, gray and black to yellow, pink and red, these hues are a result of different mineral and chemical changes causing erosion in the sedimentary rock layers. This erosion is caused by wind, rain and other weather conditions.
The various layers erode at different speeds based on their individual composition. Because of the different erosion rates, it can cause the rocks to have a “slumping” appearance. But one thing that I thought was so interesting is that they lose about one inch of rock per year due to this erosion.
I thought about how this is similar to how our emotions settle at different levels within us. Both our emotions and sedimentary rock erosion involve the gradual wearing down, shaping and transforming of our landscape over time. They can be impacted by positive, negative, acute or gradual forces of everyday life.
Although erosion is often looked at as inherently destructive, we can also view it is as a means of tapping into our inner strength. After all, true resilience is not about remaining rigid and unchanging. It’s about adapting, enduring and transforming through some sort of pressure or change.
Erosion of the earth can expose cool things like underground springs, mineral deposits and ancient fossils. Similarly, when we allow ourselves to see beyond hardship and trauma, it creates an opportunity for us to discover internal resources we may not have known we had, like patience, courage, problem solving skills or emotional endurance.
As a result, we’re able to expose a deeper sense of empathy, wisdom and resilience that otherwise wouldn’t have been accessible to us.
And this allows us to focus more on what truly matters not only for our growth, but for our very survival.
