Get back up again...

Sister Joan Chittister, Order of Saint Benedict (OSB), tells the following story that when a visitor to a monastery asked the monks what it is they do all day their answer was, “ We fall and we get up; we fall and we get up….” It’s a tale that hints to grace and to resiliency and to support for one another and to being part of a community.

I thought of this story following last night’s ACADEMY AWARDS telecast and what happened to Best Actress in a Leading Role Oscar winner, Jennifer Lawrence. On her way to claim her Oscar she tripped and fell on the steps leading to the stage. It’s one of those moments when one immediately feels for the person. Here’s this 22-year old actress and the big moment of her career and in this literal and metaphorical Hollywood moment she trips and falls….in front of the acting royalty of the day…in front of the millions watching around the world.

Ever since her performance in WINTER’S BONE and her strong and courageous turn as Katniss in THE HUNGER GAMES, I have been a fan of Jennifer Lawrence. Her down-to-earth and real-ness and incredible humor during all the interviews she did leading up to the Oscars endeared her even more.

She picked herself up, walked up on stage, claimed her Oscar and didn’t try and pretend. Jennifer named it, used humor to soften it and showed herself to be a real and resilient class act.

What does one do when you fall or stumble and even more so when it happens in a very public way?

I would hope we each are able to call from within us that same strength of honesty and resiliency to pick ourselves back up. We all fall and we all screw up and we all at one time another will make the error that loses the game. The important question is how one responds.

Last night, this young starlet provided us with a great example --- honesty, humor, humility and heart --- call it the 4 H’s of a class act.

sj;