Dealing
with Frustration
“Frustration,
although quite painful at times, is a very positive and essential
part of success.”
Bo
Bennett
I
had one of those awful dreams last night. Everyone in the house is
preparing to go out to dinner at a nice restaurant. We have
reservations. But I can't seem to get myself together. I can't find
anything appropriate to wear. I lose my purse, my make-up; even my
shoes and comb elude me. I'm rushing around in the dream with nothing
going my way when I hear the car start up outside. I peek out the
window and see the rest of the family backing out of the driveway,
leaving without me. I awoke with my heart racing from pure
frustration.
I
thought about old friends yesterday, seeing the miles-long lines of
cars trying to get into New York City, moving at less than a snail's
pace. I felt claustrophobic just watching the footage. I remembered
Fran, who lived in Brooklyn, and left home at five o'clock in the
morning to get to work uptown by eight. And that was when the ferry
and the trains were running on time! I thought about Donna, who lived
in Queens and drove in everyday. There was almost always a wreck on
the Queens Borough bridge that would make her late.
I
recalled tempers in NYC during the winter of 1977, when I lived
there. It seemed as though every union in the city was on strike—the
trash collectors, the street cleaning crews. I even had to run a
blockade of striking hospital employees to get to my job at Mt.
Sinai. Garbage piled up on the streets and was buried under black
snow. I was always late to work because I had to devise some means of
getting into the building that didn't involve being beaned on the
head with a picket sign. People were cold and they were mad, just
like they are now. Nothing ever happens as quickly as we want it to.
I
feel for the officials who are trying to wrap their head's around
this devastation. I suppose there are priorities in place that say
who gets what first, but I can't imagine how one goes about sorting
it out. To my mind, having even some of the trains and bridges open
in two days is a stunning feat. Providing food and water for millions
of people who are dealing with the loss of everything is a staggering
accomplishment. But for the people in those lines, and on the newly
rearranged Jersey shore, it feels like an eternity of waiting.
As
the week goes on with frustration building and tempers flaring, those
of us out here in the safe zone will hold peaceful thoughts, say lots
of prayers, send love and money and hold those dealing with the
crisis in our hearts.
In
the spirit,
Jane
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