It was an August Monday, with full-bore Florida heat and humidity, when our air conditioning shut down. If you’re familiar with August in Florida, you know that’s a Code Red emergency. So I cancelled my Monday massage to sit trapped in the stuffy house, waiting for the guy with the magic tools and know-how to restore cool. Cranky might be an understatement.

Then came the Plot Twist.

A friend called, needing help with a writing project. Urgency came with the request, as the project had been put off until it was now overdue, and she was panicked. Unlike most Monday afternoons, I was home with time on my hands. Sweltering and cranky (and a little annoyed at the ask) but available, so I agreed. Words fell together like pieces of a puzzle: move this paragraph down, lead with a story, add a compelling close.

Despite my crankiness, it felt good. Not just the writing, but the helping. It wouldn’t have happened without broken AC. While I can’t say I was grateful for the AC bill, it paid off in a sense of self-validation – even though I didn’t recognize it immediately. Plus, my friend was happy.

Rotator cuff surgery was, to put it mildly, a bitch. Physical therapy was more painful than childbirth due to the many limitations involved. How good are you at doing everything with one functional, non-dominant arm?

The Plot Twist: I learned a lot about good and bad physical therapy, knowledge that was invaluable to me in my job. More important, I made a lifelong friend in the process, and I wouldn’t trade that for anything.

Do you ever look back on your less-positive experiences and discover they set you on the path to something great or at least better? Hindsight is a gift for reflecting on closed doors and seeing the windows that opened instead. I’m beginning to see the Plot Twist more regularly.

I recently watched the animated movie “Inside Out” about the emotions who inhabit a young girl named Riley. While Fear, Anger, Disgust, and Sadness play important roles in her life, most often they cede way to Joy.

Plot Twist: the day Sadness and Joy get lost and must rely on each other to return, they learn Riley can’t fully appreciate Joy without acknowledging Sadness. All the characters/emotions worked in concert to make Riley a healthy human. Animation can be profound.

Leaving my full-time career jumbled my emotions. It didn’t fit the narrative in my head, and I struggled to reconcile Anger and Sadness, or at least tamp them down.

The first Plot Twist came quickly, with an invitation to help build a women’s group for my local hospice. I wouldn’t have been asked while in career mode, but the project brought me treasured new friends and incalculable rewards. My hospice volunteerism then led to some freelance writing work that restored my self-confidence and offered a sense of accomplishment. Several years later, through my work as a writer, I met Amy, then squashed down *INSECURITY* to join her on this blog. Sometimes the stars align just right. And I can appreciate the Joy fully, having let all the emotions weigh in.

The plot continues to get better. Now, nearly a decade later seeing so many lose jobs due to Covid-19, I’ve been able to offer perspective and hope to others dealing with a major life transition. 

2020

These days, I’m questioning what treasure we might find at the end of the Covid-19 rainbow. Right now, it feels like nothing good will come of it, as we face one unfathomable reality after another. You know — 2020:  the year of a presidential impeachment trial, Covid-19, murder hornets, unjust killings of Black people, civil unrest and protests, the militarization of police, divisive election year rhetoric, heat waves and floods and fires. The year that seems to last forever.

Will there be a Plot Twist?

History has started letting my cynical self believe there might be a pot of gold.

I’m seeing inklings of major social transformation, with a more substantial push for racial justice. Can we finally, fully turn that corner?

Can our state of police action become one of social action?

As we see the gaping holes in our health care system, will we seek ways to repair them?

 Will we begin to address climate change before it is too late – if it’s not already?

I don’t know what the big picture has in store, but I sure hope there’s a plot twist that leads to a better path for all of us.

What gives you hope in these surreal days?

P.S.:  I had to have fasting blood work drawn this morning, which is never a favorite activity. But when I left the clinic, I was met by a glorious sunrise.