Transforming Chaos and Pain to Humor

Life can deal some harsh blows that knock us off our feet, but it is what we do with the punches that makes a difference in getting knocked down or standing back up. I heard it once said that, "Humor is tragedy plus time." Sounds a bit callous, but when I think of some of the bad things that have happened to me over the years, I can now laugh. The change didn't' happen overnight. A combination of time, plus letting go of the old story, and being willing to tell a new one from a different perspective, were the keys to seeing the humor.

I remember one instance in particular that demonstrates this point vividly. The accident happened on a Friday night about 7pm over 20 years ago in Novato, California. I was recently divorced and had just worked all week teaching school in addition to single parenting my four young children. The kids and I had been in grueling traffic for three hours through San Francisco and over the Golden Gate Bridge. We were all hungry and tired, so I exited the freeway and parked my station wagon in front of a family restaurant. My oldest daughter, who was eager to eat, jumped out of the car and accidentally slammed the car door on her brother's hand. In addition, the handle inside was broken and his hand was stuck.

He was screaming in pain, so I instinctively unbuckled and lunged out of the car to help. However, before I could assist, I was tangled up in the seatbelt as the driverless car started backing up across the lot. I had mistakenly put the car in reverse instead of park. My body was dangling out of the door with my arm and back being dragged by the massive car across the pavement. I finally jerked free from the seatbelt that entrapped me and fell down onto the pavement, only to have the back tire and then the front tire of the heavy car run directly over me. As I was writhing in pain, I helplessly watched my runaway car with my beloved children careen across the parking lot and smash into a parked car on the other side of the lot.

Chaos ensued! All four children were hysterical, and my car and the other car were smashed! I was injured and could not walk from the pain. The firefighters from next door, dashed over to help when they heard the screams and the crash. The owner of the other car appeared from the restaurant as well as a few curious customers. It was one of the most humiliating and horrible nights of my life. Imagine my embarrassment when I went to the hospital and had to tell them I ran myself over with my own car. Luckily, my son's hand was OK.

Now I look back at that intense experience and smile because it's so ludicrous that it's silly! My kids are all grown and every now and then we all laugh at that crazy night! Over time, I learned that the accident probably happened because I needed to slow down in my life and learn to ask for help. Although life knocked me down, and dragged me, I was able to recover, get back on my feet and change my perspective. Perhaps if you are in a tough situation now, 20 years from today you will be laughing too. I hope so.

Liah Howard is a Psychic/Channeland radio show host. She writes for two inspirational magazines, Maui Vision and The Center for World networking. Liah teaches classes in Psychic Development and can be reached at http://www.liahhoward.com/ Liah is the mother of four and a grandmother. Liah has an on-line 20 class series to help one to develop their intuition. Visit liah's website for free guided meditations, articles,videos and more!

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