Fragility can make you very strong

It helps us understand who we are. To see others. To be more humble. As long as it doesn't turn into resignation and sloth.

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virtue of fragility

In times when strength is in fashion, unbridled competition that does not forgive any weakness, the muscle that you have to show to some eternal antagonist that excites your vital energy, it is time to rediscover the virtue of fragilityA virtue, mind you, that belongs to all of us, inherent in human nature, even when we try to disguise it with some modern bullying attitude, virtual or real, it is just a detail. Fragility helps us truly discover who we areIt takes us into the Self, but not into the darkness of indifference, but into the light of sharing. The fragile one is I, of course, but we are also We, and so if we recognize each other, it is easier to stay together, to move forward together.

selfishness is over

Fragility, which almost seems like an out-of-use coin, a disappeared language, a useless thermometer of weakness, is in reality very modernIn times when we need not only to share, but also to show kindness and responsibility towards others. From close relatives to neighbors, from men and women who, with children, come from far away, to those who are at our side, by choice or by duty, every single day. Fragile, in the summary of a beautiful book that I recommend you read (In praise of fragility by Roberto Gramiccia, published by Mimemis), is the opposite of strong, until we discover, as some revolutions also teach us, that it's not the fragile who always loses. On the contrary. Fragility can give greatness to a poet's inspiration (remember Giacomo Leopardi's immortality?) or it can be the lever of a creative and revolutionary force. As long as, warns the writer and physician Gramiccia, it doesn't turn into resignation and sloth.

Fragility is human nature itself. And denying it means wasting an essential part of our being.. The philosopher Blaise Pascal wrote: "Man is nothing but a reed, the most fragile of all in nature, but he is a thinking reed." Yes, thinking? It's not necessarily true that thoughts are always inspired by the idea of ​​growing, maturing, truly being oneself, freeing oneself from the hateful need to appear (obviously not fragile).

Everything is fragile. From an idea, which we were convinced of to the point of arrogance and conceit, to a feeling that fades with the wear and tear of relentless time. From a hope, without which we lack the oxygen of utopia, of dreams, of the impossible translated into the possible, to a certainty, which crumbles under the blows of a breath, especially if it has weak foundations. From the joy we dream of as unattainable to the pain, the sadness that comes crashing down on us, full in the face and without warning. Everything is fragile, but our strength, as the American philosopher and writer Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote, «ripens from weakness»From the virtue, yet to be rediscovered, of fragility.

The etymology of the word traces back to Latin fringe, to break, shatter, shatter. The concept is clear when it comes to objects: something fragile, think of a glass vase, can break very easily, and then becomes difficult to reconstruct. But can this concept be applied in a mirror-like manner to humans? In fact, as the psychiatrist says: Vittorino Andreoli, "fragility remakes man"It's an opportunity, not to be wasted. It allows us to look inside ourselves, to rethink our lifestyle, our passions, who we are and where we're going. And it helps us become aware of our limits and weaknesses, thus discovering the existential importance of...humility.

 

Let's make it clear that we all share weaknesses e fears in the unique melting pot of human nature and that we must have more respect for our own and others' weaknesses, we can take a step forward, the decisive one, in seeking out fragility. Yes, since we recognize its value, then it is a question of don't waste it and, if anything, enhance it. Gradually. The first step is to reevaluate our vulnerable aspects, no longer hiding them from ourselves or clumsily trying to remove them, but rather showing them with warmth and with empathyThat shyness that turns into blushing, that staying silent for fear of saying inappropriate things, can become the dough of a rare and precious virtue: discretion. They can give us character, a personality. And our fragility, once shown with openness towards others, makes us more tender, more spontaneous and even funnier. Furthermore, in this way, recognizing the right to be wrong, we will be able to escape the constant judgment of others, and even our own equally obsessive self-judgment. The second step is outward: revealing to others, starting with the people we love most, our insecurities, our fears, and the emotions that bind us together in a single bundle of fragility. There's no need for exhibitionism or forcing; our fragility must be revealed delicately and gradually. And it will help our neighbors empathize with our weaknesses and share them. In a mysterious chain of relationships and affections.

But before one's own fragility, perhaps one must make an effort to discover and recognize that of othersPeople weaker than us, and often ignored with the indifference of silence. Already Voltaire He said that "we live in a society, therefore there is nothing that is not truly good for us if it is not good for society." A concept that seems written tailored for fragility.
If it is a good thing for us, a strength rather than a weakness, it can become a good thing for everyone, if we recognize it in others too. Especially in times of resilience, a word so much in vogue: that is, resistance, like metals, to the impact of external forces. If we are resilient, if we are capable of resisting, we owe others a debt: understanding their fragilities and sharing them. A small effort with great results.

FRAGILITY FAMOUS QUOTES

  • Pope Francesco

Fragility is a condition that affects the most vulnerable: children, the elderly, the poor. But it is also an opportunity, not to be wasted, to look upon the vulnerable, not with a pitying eye, much less with a fleeting moment of attention: we need to open our hearts and bring the most vulnerable to the center of our thoughts. Not too far from the place of the feelings that give warmth to life.

 

  • Vittorino Andreoli

 

A clear and lucid confession, from a great psychiatrist, of the therapeutic value of fragility. So powerful that it becomes a tool to ward off, even in the practice of a doctor treating vulnerable people, the risk of hubris, the delusions of omnipotence, always lurking behind each of us.

 

  •  Paulo Coelho

 

The Brazilian writer's quote may sound like something out of Baci Perugina. But it has a meaning that shouldn't be underestimated: love isn't a test of strength, leading to the drift of possession, and needs to be consumed in all its fragilities. We are fragile because we love, and once again the question arises: why be ashamed of it?

 

  •  Ludwig Wittgenstein

 

The Austrian philosopher had very clear ideas about the strength of fragility, to the point of describing it as an armor that makes man so solid that he does not risk breaking under the blows of life's difficulties and defeats.

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