What a Difference a Day makes

Well…in this case a couple of days. On the weekend we were witnessing the immense pall of smoke from the bushfire on the central plateau of the Great Western Tiers, fanned by a strong westerly wind in inaccessible terrain for firefighters. The worst of it was on Saturday but the constant wind has kept it creeping along ever since, burning out around 8000 hectares of alpine bush and scrub, so all firefighters could do was to keep monitoring it, back burn if appropriate, and tackle it when it reached areas where it could actually be fought.

Today though is a different scenario altogether, and so typical of Tassie weather. Instead of fire on the mountain, we had pretty much a blizzard instead, so hopefully any little pockets of fire or smouldering embers have been well and truly taken care of with this summertime wintery cold snap.

Funny how things can turn our lives upside down in such a short space of time. When the good surprises come we welcome them with open arms and take great delight in celebrating special occasions or achievements, repaired relationships, new opportunities, recognition of your efforts, the generosity of others, and for some fame and fortune.

When the not so good surprises come, that’s when the challenge arises. None of us can see round the corner and prepare for what’s coming, simply because we don’t know what’s coming. Things come out of left field, and often at a time when it’s most inconvenient or we feel ill equipped to deal with it. Accidents resulting in serious injury or death, the onset of sudden or terminal illness, the loss of employment and the snowball effect that can have on your whole world, marriage breakdown, broken family relationships, losing your home through flood or fire or other natural disaster, being bullied at school or work, all these things and more can occur at a moment’s notice when we’re least expecting it.

So how do we prepare for such events? For some you can obviously take out insurance, but that still doesn’t belittle the emotional impact these events can have on our lives. All you need to do is read the stories of those caught up in the Black Saturday fires in Victoria to know some people will understandably never be the same again. Tragic events can leave a legacy. There is no single or simple way to tackle the journey, and there is certainly no time limit on the healing process.

None of us like chaos. When so much in the world around us seems fragmented and totally dysfunctional, we like to think we at least have the power to control our private little world, but then discover that’s not always the case. What we can control though, is how we face the challenges which threaten to throw us off the rails. Will we shrivel inside, withdraw in defeat, or will we rise to the occasion, pin our colours to the mast, and engage in whatever battle needs to be waged to achieve a good outcome.

I’m not wanting to sound simplistic, but it’s amazing how when we’re actually thrust into a situation not of our own making, another part of us can rise, enabling us to face the challenge. It is in such hard times that our true character is revealed.

All the plans we are in the business of making are continually being upset by both disaster and delight. Life throws things at us that we cannot predict and cannot control. What we can control is who we are along the way…how much energy, compassion, and integrity we bring to our journey.

                                     

From Learning to Fall by Philip Simmons