19th Century sailing ships, traversing oceans for months at a time, knew all about weathering storms. They had plans in place and a lookout in the crow’s nest to be ready for an unpredictable squall. As soon as the storm was spotted, the crew worked together to mobilize and make sure the ship was prepared for the strike.
So many of us are unprepared to weather our own metaphorical storms. I’m not talking the completely unpredictable ones that come our way, but instead the ones that our lookouts can see coming. The week of the musical, exam weeks, concert days.
If a ship didn’t reef its sails, batten its hatches, lash the rigging, it risked being destroyed by a powerful squall. Every time we don’t have similar plans in place for our own personal storms, we take the same risks.
Seeing them coming is important–that’s what calendars are for. But often we do nothing more than say, “Here it comes!” What plans can you put in place, and rehearse, when the seas are calm? How can you be ready to batten down your hatches and be ready to sail through the storm?