Test

"This life has been a test. If it had been an actual life, you would have received actual instructions on where to go and what to do." -- Angela Chase, My So-Called Life



Have you ever gone through a personal crisis and just thought that it seemed so unfair that the world just kept on turning? Like how you're still expected to return phone calls, go to work, pay bills and get groceries? When all you really want to do is stop somebody, maybe even everybody, and say, "Hey, wait a minute. I can't deal with all this crap right now. I have bigger problems to take care of. Can't it wait?"

But the sick thing is, it can't wait. You still have work to do, you still have a family that needs you, and you definitely still have bills to pay. And so we simply have to deal. On the fly. On the go.

Have you ever noticed that how people deal with things -- how we all process the bad stuff that has happened or is happening to us -- really reflects what each of us is all about? Some people lock themselves in their bedroom for hours and cry their eyes out, some people watch TV, some people punch pillows, some people punch other people, some people drink, and some people start wielding weapons ...

We all deal different ways, because we're obviously all very different. Sad, non-confrontational, frustrated, angry, apathetic, aggressive. During really bad times it's like we get stripped down to the basic stuff we're made of in order to find out what kind of mental and emotional obstacles we're capable of overcoming.

But the really interesting thing is, this is always going on. Every person is dealing with something. And whether that something requires five seconds or 50 minutes to fully be explained, it is still being dealt with, still being processed, still testing that person.

I am currently dealing with a personal crisis. Probably just like everyone else. And I'm trying to remember that latter part every day. The cashier at my regular coffee shop ... The teller at my bank ... My coworkers ... Maybe they're all dealing with difficult things, too. Maybe the next time someone comes up to me and says something mean or rude, I'll be able to hear what they might really be saying: "Hey, wait a minute. I can't deal with all this crap right now. I have bigger problems to take care of. Can't it wait?"