I OFTEN encounter people who apparently prefer to see the dark or damp side of life.
Instead of seeing the clouds, they see rain. Instead of seeing possibilities, they see hurdles. It can be frustrating especially in a work setting.
A lifetime ago I was in close encounter with one. He was the wet blanket in everything we would embark on, I'd often lose my temper. “We haven't even tried it yet and you're saying that it can't be done?” I screamed.
Yes, I do know how to scream, especially when goaded often and repeatedly told that things can't be done.
I remember a good friend who has passed on a while back telling our companions as I sat quivering in a corner after realizing that I bit more than I can chew and was trying to shake off the fear I swallowed just to get out of that one harrowing experience.
He chuckled in sympathy before saying, “Don't worry, she'll recover. That's Stella. She will jump into anything, but, dali ra man na siya matagam (but learns her lesson quick).”
I glared at him, he laughed out loud. It dawned on me though that during all those times we ventured into the unknown and survived, he was observing and apparently chuckling as I learned yet another lesson.
Maybe at times, as a quivering mess, but wiser.
Foolhardy? Not really. More like, why not? What if it can be done?
Most of the time, it can, anyway. You just have to have the heart and the brain to do so.
Exercises in worst case scenario settings are as abhorring to me as being forced to stay inside the classroom. And since I'm one who stayed because the world demands you to earn a degree... I know aversion like the back of my hand and steer as far away as possible as I navigate the light where there are no walls, no boxes to think outside of.
Think outside the box! A statement I often hear as my braincells resentfully whisper, “What box? You're the only one who placed it there.”
In the meantime, I try to comb down my hackles as associates go on a litany of the impossible and say that they see the possibilities provided this and that conditions are first met.
Forced to be amiable, I choose to remain quiet and mumble, “That's the very reason nothing is ever done.”
Seriously, life is fun and full of possibilities for as long as you do away with worries. Take stock of what you have, take stock of what can be done with what you have, then fly. If you fail, then at least you know why it didn't work.
Worrying is thinking of the things you do not want to happen and willing them to, if that isn't foolhardier than jumping into unfamiliar waters and yet knowing what your gear are for...
A friend who was just about to lose it after suffering one mishap after another that was costing him his life's savings and present earnings was saying over and over again that he seemed to be cursed. I looked at him and said, “Go to sleep. Worry tonight, and you will only lose sleep.
Sleep and you will be well-rested to face those problems tomorrow.” He has bounced back, richer than he was ever before. All he did was chuck out the worries and addressed the problems, one by one, and yes, made it a point to get a good night's sleep every night.
saestremera@gmail.com