Solutions for a red eye
Women and Adversity: Accepting a red eye
It was an accident.
I lifted my left hand to scratch the corner of my eye, and the long nail on my index finger nipped the white. Within minutes the entire white of my eye was beet red, ruby red, red red. Entirely. It was grotesque.
I was leaving the next day for my high school reunion and would see people I hadn’t seen in decades. Hmm. What to do? I considered not showing up. I considered wearing an eye patch. I considered composing a long explanation. I stopped at a pharmacy on the way to the airport, but the pharmacist said no drops would help, and I should see a doctor.
I did none of the above.
When I walked into the reunion, the second person I saw gasped. “Your eye is red!”
“I nicked it with my fingernail.” End of story.
The next person asked, “What happened to your eye?”
The same explanation.
I repeated my story several times until word got around. When someone echoed what the pharmacist had said, I answered that it didn’t hurt and I could see, so a doctor wasn’t necessary. As far as I know, no one avoided me because of my eye.
What did I learn from the experience?
I like the last suggestion Courtnie Erickson offers at
http://familyshare.com/growth/how-to-stay-calm-amid-lifersquos-storms:
Look for the hidden lesson.
- I learned not to avoid an uncomfortable situation.
- I learned that a former classmate, who was a dear friend in high school, is very ill. I would never have learned that if I hadn’t gone to the reunion.
- I got the address of another classmate, also a dear friend in high school. I would not have gotten that if I had avoided the reunion.
- I reunited with a high school friend I haven’t seen in years, and we reconnected.
All that would have been lost if I hadn’t gone, and it offers several ideas for How-to stories
- How to face adversity
- How to learn from adversity
- How to accept out-of-the ordinary experiences
Another site that offers suggestions on dealing with adversity is: http://www.forbes.com/sites/glennllopis/2014/01/20/7-ways-leaders-maintain-their-composure-in-difficult-times/
