A thick skin is a gift from God.

The line treats emotional resilience—being able to absorb criticism, hostility, and setbacks without being derailed—as a providential endowment rather than merely a learned skill. In Adenauer’s political world, where public scrutiny, partisan attack, and the burdens of postwar reconstruction were constant, “thick skin” names a practical virtue: the capacity to keep acting and deciding under pressure. Calling it “a gift from God” both elevates the trait morally and hints at humility: endurance is not simply self-made toughness but something one is fortunate to possess. The remark also implies a counsel to leaders: effectiveness often depends less on brilliance than on steadiness under fire.