“What happens is not as important as how you react to what happens.”

Thaddeus Golas

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As I was driving back from Burlington, Vermont, today, I had a flat tire on my car. As we started to fix the flat tire, one of the lock nut broke in a way that it was impossible to remove  the wheel. Trying to find a garage that is open for business on a Sunday afternoon is quite a challenge, especially in a small rural area. So we phoned CAA to get some help. When the guy arrived on site, he was unable to fix the problem for us. So, with his help, we manage to put some air in the tire and drive about 10 km while he was calling his boss to see if he could open the garage to help us out. Luckily for us, his boss agreed to come and help.

After almost 3 hours of delay, we were able to keep driving back home to Montreal.

Even if my family and I had a very good get-away week end, we were getting impatient as it was taking longer than expected to solve this problem. I had to stay calm and try to encourage the others in the car to remain as calm as possible. It is much easier to write and talk about calmness than to get everyone to stay calm. ( wife and teenagers)

When something happens, we  must stop ourself from reacting, and notice if our reaction is about to benefit us or disadvantage us. The way we choose to react can actually help us grow positively, regardless of the problem.