“Is this Mrs. Herlong?’ Asked the stranger. “Yes, this is customer service for Neiman Marcus. One of our customer care associates received your return and when they opened the box, it was not the Joan Vass Poppy dress…it was a cell phone.” Busy people…
I only wished I could have been present when the Verizon Wireless people opened a similar box containing the Joan Vass dress….surprise! I am glad the female comedian in me is alive and well.
I was listening to the Clemson football game as I drove back from Charlotte, North Carolina. I knew Thomas was attending the game but would be tired from his business trip to Kansas City. I called his cell and a heard a very fatigued and labored, H-e-l-l-o? “Wow,” I said. “I thought you would be in the stadium. How is the game?”
“I did not go the game,” he said. “I fell asleep at the Atlanta airport and, well, I missed my flight. I had to spend the night in the airport and I got home about 1:30 this afternoon. I feel stupid.”
Thomas and I were both suffering from a condition I call, BPDSS…Busy People Do Stupid Stuff. Both of these events were a bit of a shock but Thomas and I were able to laugh it off.
Most of us have to deal with shocking things from time to time that can give us humorous moments but there are times when shocking events are not so funny.
According to National Center for PTSD, “Going through trauma is not rare. About 6 of every 10 (or 60%) of men and 5 of every 10 (or 50%) of women experience at least one trauma in their lives.”
Becky Sansbury is the author of the book, After the Shock: Getting You Back On the Road to Resilience When Crisis Hits You Head On. Becky Sansbury introduces a sustainable model to help you stabilize and move toward resilience. After decades of working with people in crisis, she determined that four factors give us balance: comfort, control, community, and connection to something greater than self. We can use our experience, assumptions, and resources to put those stabilizers to work for us.
Whether you experience a bit of a shock to laugh off or you need some skills that require much more than a chuckle, the goal is to find and live a balanced life.
PS: Don’t forget to get your hands on my BRAND NEW FUNNY CD! Email me today for more information.
