TRAPPED

Trapped

I detest being trapped in traffic so much so that appointments in the direction of downtown are scheduled between 10 AM and 2 PM. Other impatient drivers or worse yet, the dawdling drivers who have no sense of moving with the flow of traffic make me cringe. In my mind, with a few exceptions, there is little reason for traffic to completely stop.

Why this disdain for being trapped in traffic, a situation I can’t control, when I am not that way with other un- controllables? I have flown the nineteen hours from JFK to Singapore without a single minute of angst and yet 5 minutes of being trapped in traffic has me uttering phrases that I would rather not put in writing. Why?

Here are some insights into this conundrum. When trapped in traffic, I can’t escape the confines of the vehicle without serious consequences. I am stuck! I didn’t plan on being stuck. Being stuck potentially means stifled feelings and emotions are now inescapable. They present themselves and are even compounded by my frustration with the traffic. I can’t change location (my default) to escape unpleasant thoughts.

The eighteen-hour flight home from Singapore was a dynamic illustration of this fact. I planned the distractions for the time.

As I reviewed vacation photos, I didn’t want to escape the awesome memories of the beautiful sunrises and sunsets. There were pictures of me exiting a speed boat in the Indian Ocean to board a kayak to go to places that the speed boat couldn’t go. The photos made my heart race, and I felt the controlled terror of the excursion. Had I not been trapped in a massive tube somewhere above the earth, I would have found an alternative to surfing photos. But what else did I have to do in the middle of the night, thousands of feet in the air? Nothing. So, I forced myself to look critically at the kayak photos and others taken that day including ones of my traveling friends standing on a sandbar in the middle of the ocean. Both albums of photos had my heart pounding.

Trapped on that plane, I relived the terrifying moments of that day. But I also settled into the reality that nothing bad happened. The kayak didn’t flip. The sandbar didn’t suddenly sink back into the ocean. I gradually allowed myself to appreciate the incredible beauty that had surrounded me and was filled with gratitude for having seen sculptures and wonders of nature that most only read about or see on TV.

Now you can take from this narrative what you want. I think being trapped may have some merit…acceptance of what can’t be changed and release of self to feelings. While real, feelings cannot be trusted so transition that “feeling” energy into something that will sustain you- gratitude. Pour a swallow of gratitude into your cup, swirl it around, smell it, look at it and then taste. A taste will make you want more.

Less than a month after I penned these words, I and six other drivers was the reason others were trapped in traffic. I wonder how they managed it.

2 Corinthians 4:8-9

PONDER THIS THOUGHT… There is always something to be grateful for. Look for it