Take Three

After a colonoscopy or root canal a person is warned not to sign any contracts or make any big decisions. That's because the body is working through anesthesia and the body is working through an artificial shock to its usual working order.

After a home invasion or vehicle accident the same warning is given: trauma clouds the brain and fear can lead to impulsive decisions.

After a separation or divorce people are warned not to fall for the 'bounce back date' because emotions are in a jumble and selfcare is needed.

These are all sound and useful directives and I am not aiming to discredit them. What I am aiming for is how to integrate this wisdom into my present life.

Somehow, I'd imagined that wisdom would enter my life like pretty rocks on the beach- waiting for me to gather them up and bring them home to display in an earthenware bowl placed handily by to roll between my fingers whilst sipping the daily coffee.

That all of my life experiences would allow me to cope with progressively bigger disruptions with grace and elan. Fewer things would unnerve me, my flight or feed (yes- I revolve around this choice as 'fight' has never seemed practical for me) responses would be less triggered. I would be the serene elder.

aha! hahaha! haha! haha! haha!

-my inner person at this very notion

So.

What to do when I want to run away from the daily assault of war? hunger? sickness? greed? lies? poverty? injustice? aggression? unlawfulness? misogyny? pain? fear? FEAR? FEAR?

It's not like I can simply refuse to make any decisions or to wait out the jumble of emotions that arrive one after the other like a toddler's questions.

The latest headline that arrived in my inbox is that the protections for the National Forests here in the US are being targeted for cancellation to allow for roads, building, and mining.

Sailors have been told they cannot disembark without signing an NDA that prohibits them from saying anything 'insufficiently beautiful' about their experience. (Guess what? That wasn't true- it came from a satirical piece that was deemed so likely it was shared everywhere... including by me!)

I learned that hyper-addictive Kratom is sold in gas stations right next to the 5-Hour You-won't-sleep-for-hours stuff. The DHS Secretary Markwayne Mullin is invested close to $1 million in the Kratom company Feel Free (shown above in a photo taken in IL this week) Kratom company, and RFK Jr has also given it his support. It is legal in 41 out of the 50 United States, and banned in several European and Asian countries.

Aside: Comedians make fun of 'gas station sushi', but 41 states allow the purchase of a 'gas station drug of concern', as per the FDA in 2025. That is actually a softened stance from 2024 when the FDA warned that a third of kratom-users experience such effects as cardiac arrest, liver damage, and death from overdose.

Isn't it crazy?

So I started out with colonoscopy and here I am at Kratom. (Hang with me a moment.) Is this a symptom of erratic thinking? Maybe. But it is also a snapshot of the news that arrived within 60 minutes... unannounced and unsought, through email 'alerts' and a casual conversation.

Data, news, announcements, executive orders, press releases, push notifications: all bombard us daily, hourly, and by the minute. One or all of them could be 'THE' thing that hits YOU as the LAST STRAW. (Just thinking of accidently grabbing an addictive product that the brain sees as addictive opioid-like infuriates me) That reminds you of something lost. That threatens your security. That disrupts you home life (Lettuce anyone? maybe jalapenos? How about some salmonella in your eggs?)

You might start saying things like 'It's about time to', and 'Why doesn't anyone', or 'finally they will', or even 'that's it- that's all I can take'. Those things spring to mind, but take it you will. You will take it and need to make a decision- even if your brain, heart palpitations, headache tell you this is not a good time to do so.

What will you decide? I don't know- I'm too busy over here deciding what I will do. But I can tell you that you WILL make a decision. It will be either:

• do nothing

• do something

Because doing nothing is still making a decision. Sometimes it's the very best decision you can make.

Perhaps you don't have all the facts? Perhaps it isn't safe for you to do something?

Try This

Take control of the decision process and give yourself clarity. Ask yourself these three questions:

1. Does this need to be done?

2. Does this need to be done by me?

3. Does this need to be done now?

[Tip: replace 'done' with 'said' before you speak in anger or haste. These three questions are helpful there, too.]

Only if all 3 of the questions are yes should you begin to consider the steps to action (or speaking).
Something may very well need to be done, but you are not the correct person to do it.
Perhaps you ARE the correct person (question 2), but it doesn't need to be done right away (question 3).

Maybe the doctors have the right idea? It doesn't take a colonoscopy or root canal to give yourself permission to reflect on the timing of action.