Learning Through Turbulence

On a flight headed for Dallas, I took the opportunity to rest. Very

quickly into the flight, we hit a lot of turbulence. Although I had

my seatbelt on, I woke when I was nearly flung from my seat and

then yanked right back down by my seatbelt. The woman behind me

screamed, and her seat partner calmed her down by reassuring her

we were going to be okay.

To get out of the extreme turbulence, the pilot had to change our

course a bit. He had to fly above the storm front we were moving

through. At one point, the turbulence became so bad again that I

had to grab the armrest to remain seated. The pilot again made adjustments

to navigate the storm front we were encountering.

When things calmed down, I looked out my window and noticed we

were flying on the edge of the storm front. No longer in the turbulence

of the unknowing clouds, I now had a clearer view—the storm

was in the distance and I was flying in clear skies.

What happens when turbulence comes into our lives? Do we hold

the course with what we know and hope the turbulence will just go

away? Or, like my pilot, do we adjust our course? Do we make choices

to rise above the circumstance of turbulence?

Do circumstances control you, or do you have control over your circumstances?

At any given time, circumstances will bring turbulence

into your life. To avoid being a victim of circumstance, you must

pause, recognize the feelings associated with the turbulence, and

then make choices so you can course-correct. You course-correct

by becoming present in the moment and going within to listen to

your intuition. By doing so, you will be shifting your perception and

will become open to fresh ideas, which will help you rise above the

circumstances and empower you with new choices.

My pilot saw the turbulence coming and adjusted our course. Even

though we could not see through the clouds creating the turbulence,

the pilot had tools to help him navigate us out of the storm front.

When the pilot’s original plan was not enough to get us out of the

turbulence, he came up with another plan—a new course of action.

If he had acted as if the turbulence were not there, what do you think

would have happened? Might the turbulence have increased with

worse effects? The longer we ignore something that is creating turbulence

in our life, the more the volume will increase until we pay

attention and do something to change our course. Turbulence in our

lives can show up as a wake-up call that something is out of balance.

It can show up as feelings of longing or discontent. When either of

these feelings arise, something inside of you is looking to change.

Then it is time to course-correct.