For those of us on the East Coast, last week proved to be interesting and memorable.
Tuesday brought a 5.8 earthquake and Saturday brought a Category 1 Hurricane.
Luckily there was minimal damage and injury.
In retrospect, as is often the way we learn, this last week gives reason to pause and consider our own response to external events, especially when they are totally out of our control.
The earthquake happened without warning. The hurricane was a different story … we had 3-4 days of the media preparing us for the event and then it actually happened. One situation we had no control, the other we had time to prepare yet still, when the hurricane came, we had no idea how we would be effected. We had to ride it out and then, afterwards, we were left to clean up and be thankful it wasn’t as bad as was predicted.
Sounds like our lives at times, doesn’t it? Some things just come upon us so quickly that we have no time to prepare. They happen and then we have not choice but to react.
Other times, we have plenty of time to prepare and when what we have prepared for actually occurs, we have to deal with the “aftermath” whether that be internally or externally.
We are reminded that the only constant is “me” in these situations. The only thing we have control over is ourselves in moments like these. Preparation for life’s unexpected events isn’t about taking more control, rather, it is strengthening ourselves from the inside out through increasing our ability to stay centered and grounded in the midst of whatever is going on outside, or inside, of us. It doesn’t matter what practice or discipline you engage in to do this, it just matters that you have one!
Share your stories and lessons learned through the events of the last week on our Facebook page.
We’d love to hear from you.
