If the Oxford English Dictionary (OED) had to choose the most used word for the West Asian region for Q1, 2026 it would, in all probability, be ‘resilient’. That’s right, over the last few weeks we have witnessed utmost resilience in the face of unprovoked aggression and yet maintained a calm that is praiseworthy.
The tsunami of stories on every media about Bahrain’s proactive stance to keep us safe, informed and updated has won hearts and applause nationally and internationally too. The raw tension and fear we felt in the first few days gave way to a subdued confidence that we were being taken care of.
And the one word that stood out amongst it all was ‘resilience’. Bahrain stood tall and resilient.
The OED defines the word as ‘the ability of people or things to recover quickly after setbacks, adapt to change and thrive despite adversity’. Boy! It’s precisely what we saw, grit and grace in the line of fire (no pun intended).
The leaders of this peace-loving nation showed us that if we stand together, united in thought and action we can tide over any setback and come out stronger.
Having said that, one must not confuse resilience with tolerance. Agreed there is a fine line, but it’s not blurred. Resilience is certainly not silent acceptance of a broken status quo. It is an active, defiant state of being that seeks to flourish, not just persist. While tolerance accepts the shadow, resilience insists on finding the light and moving forward.
While we may ‘get back to normal’ after this setback; resilience could be that the ‘new normal’, the scars, pain and emotions, could actually be a more defining, sophisticated version of ourselves.
It’s akin to the Japanese philosophy of ‘Kintsugi’; repairing broken pottery using lacquer mixed with powdered gold. So, instead of hiding the cracks, the gold highlights them, making the repaired piece more beautiful than the original, representing a philosophy of resilience, growth and beauty in imperfection. Scars that tell a story, subtle reminders of a journey traversed.
Having lived through this harrowing experience, it got me interested in learning more on the subject. I gathered that resilience is not a fixed trait; it is a muscle developed through the resistance of living. It is the language we speak when words fail us, with simple acts of showing up, day after day, regardless of the situation as we weather the turbulence. Quite like the birds who do not dwell on the destruction caused by a storm. They do not sit in silence to mourn the devastation of their nests or even the loss of their unborn fledglings. Instead, they resume their lives, start rebuilding and most importantly return to singing. Apparently, their singing does not denote a return to normalcy but is a celebration of survival. Maybe a signal to the world that life goes on despite the interruptions. Many a lesson to be learnt from nature, eh?
So, let’s rejoice the resilience of a nation, laud its leaders and its people and salute its strength, as we pray for brighter days to return.
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