When The Floods Recede

The people of Thailand are a resilient people.  As the flood waters of the Ping crested the banks and began to flood the shops of the night bazaar people were ready for it. Shop owners had moved their stuff to top shelves and put out fishing poles-- if there was gonna be a flood there was gonna be fish in it. They looked the devestation in the face and had a fish fry. I shit you not.

I have something to learn from the Thai people. Their shops, their homes and their way of life was altered by a force they could not control and they fried fish. In retrospect it seems like a natural transition-- move your stuff upward and put out the fishing pole and sit back and watch it happen. You cannot alter a flood so you might as well take from the flood what it has to offer.

So what flood do I have in my life and what can I take from it? I have a flood of emotions (what else is new) and dealing with them is neither simple nor easy. Complications with my visa at the Thai boarder and a mixture of loneliness and fear had me throwing temper tantrums in my apartment in Chiang Mai the other night. Growth is painful. The banks of my river crested and the flood overcame me... but now i'm in the midst of what could either be devastation or good fishing trip.  Apparently devastation can be a choice and its all about perspective.  Today I choose to go fishing-- my visa problems can be fixed and my loneliness and fear can be transformed into mature growth.  Besides, skittles are in the mail on their way to yours truly. Life could be much worse.

So the floods receded, people at fish and when the water was gone they swept out the mud, brought their goods down to floor level and opened up shop within a few short hours.  Not only did they refuse to be devastated they got back to life as soon as possible. They didn't look at the effort it would take or complain about how it made life complicated-- they just did the next right thing and got back to life as normal.

So now that my own flood has receded somewhat the plan for tomorrow is simple-- get back into the swing of things.  I'm talking to a monk at local temple to search out locations for the youth program, measuring the kids at the children's home for another group thats coming in and bringing them clothes and attempting to finish an essay for Vanderbilt Divinity school. I will pray and do the thing that make me whole and are full of self care. I will get back to my life, eat my fish and move past the flood.  I will learn how to deal with the next flood all the better... next time the fishing pole will be out a lot sooner.