Off the Cuff / My Other Journal

Working through Crises

Ours is a complex world. A highly networked society, business, family, and even a solo person is prone to an abrupt change, thus the crisis. It sometimes takes getting used to a situation to stay calm in the face of a crisis, especially if a similar situation has been handled well earlier. With some highly strung individuals, even being accustomed may not work.

In 2004, in our area, we suffered through two hurricanes fifteen days apart. We had three other couples with us in the house, as their homes were in a more dangerous zone. The first hurricane hovered over us for thirty-six hours, rattling the shutters and throwing things around which we only heard but didn't see because the house was in the dark with the electricity gone and all the windows shuttered. Meanwhile the newscasters on the radio added to the dread as they supposedly tried to guide us through the ordeal. After the hurricanes passed, several people commented that I was the calmest among all of them, and I believe I was. Simply because there was little I could do but live through the danger while taking care of the house and the guests.

There was one time, however, about three decades ago, when one of my sons was badly hurt. At that instant, I felt totally helpless. I threw up and was a wreck physically. Although a couple of hours later, I composed myself and handled the situation quite well. That was the only time in my life when I totally lost it.

Usually and so far, in the face of a crisis, I act and feel quite calm. I assess the situation, gather data, and try to think of the best and the fastest solution. In some cases, I am also pro-active and try not to get into situations that may end up in a crisis. For that reason, most of the projects I am involved in turn out all right.

As the world changes around me, this seemingly stable attitude may not always work. I don't know how I would face a terrible life-altering situation, should it come to pass. But then deep down, I know that we must deal with the traumas in our lives. I also think we go through trials in order to understand others in the same or similar situations, and afterwards, to find ourselves in a better place of understanding life in general. One thing I can attest to is that, should a crisis show up, avoiding it makes things worse because the more you try to cover things up, the more they float to the top.

When a crisis looms in the horizon, my psychological support is the serenity prayer.
"God grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change; courage to change the things I can; and wisdom to know the difference."

In addition, as a writer, facing a crisis and watching others go through their own crises help to construct credible plots with believable characters. It helps to look at the positive in everything.

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Prompt: Honestly, evaluate the way you respond to a crisis situation. Are you happy with the way you react?