Life's Perfect Cocktail
“You’re only as strong as the cocktails you drink, the tables you dance on, and the friends you keep.”
Kalavanda, a place in Hvar, Croatia
The best life lessons are oftentimes found in your friendly neighborhood bar. In this case, Hvar, Croatia, was my neighborhood. When in Hvar, I saw the quote on a chalkboard outside of a swanky bar. The quote is the perfect metaphor for life, a perfect cocktail recipe for life.
Let’s breakdown the ingredients necessary to make you strong. Definitions of strong include “firmly held or established,” “possessing skills and qualities that create a likelihood of success,” “powerfully affecting the mind, sense, or emotions,” and “showing determination, self-control, and good judgment.”
A Strong Drink
Drinking a strong cocktail is a metaphor for infusing your life with strength. Keep people around you with a powerful mind, that are solid individuals, and are aligned with your success and goals. Infusing your life with strength is more than people. It includes, among other things, your habits, what you are reading, what you are listening to, the energy around you, and the environments you frequent. Drink that strong cocktail. Heck make it a double, the stronger the better!
A Strong Table
Make no mistake, dancing on tables is one of my small life pleasures, especially immediately after a strong cocktail. To be able to dance on a table is a metaphor for having a solid foundation in your life. When dancing on a table, for that moment, I feel carefree and invincible while living my best life. A foundation that allows you to live your best life is an asset. A strong foundation may mean something different for different people. Likewise, what you will consider a strong foundation may change over time. Knowingly or unknowingly, that strong foundation gives you the power and confidence to take risks, grow, and be you, unapologetically you. Occasionally, you may fall off the table, but just climb back up. Similarly, when times are rough, the foundation will hold you up. So, keep dancing, even stomping, on the table.
A Strong Friend
No explanation needed. We all need a support system. We all need good influences. We all need friendship. Hang on to the good and strong friends. Do not just take from your friends, make sure you are contributing and being a strong friend too. Your friends may include family. Whether your blood family or framily, you choose your friends. Choose wisely.
Strong Drink + Strong Table + Strong Friends = Life’s Perfect Cocktail
Are these ingredients part of your Life’s Perfect Cocktail? What else do you want in your cocktail?