Danger and Opportunity

Every family will experience some form of crisis throughout their lives together. Some of these events may include bankruptcy, the death of a child, the death of a parent, the loss of a job, and many others. However, the effect that these crises have on a family depends on how they choose to view the situation. They can either let the calamity pull their family apart, or they can depend on each other throughout their predicament, and allow the event to have positive effects on their family in the long run.

The Japanese symbol for 'Crisis' is made up of two symbols.

 

Crisis = Danger + Opportunity

The symbol for 'Danger' symbolizes something hard that a family experiences, and the symbol for 'Opportunity' tells us that the crisis is a chance for the family to take the experience and run with it. It is a chance for them to learn and grow; a chance to become even closer as a family than they were before the calamity.

There are specific things we can do to turn a crisis into an experience for our betterment, instead of something that we may never recover from.

     1. During a crisis, a family can depend on the support of others. It would be extremely difficult to go through most crises alone. A family should seek out friends' support, the help of ecclesiastical leaders, and of relatives and neighbors. This will help the community become closer, and it will assist the family to know that they do not have to suffer, nor pull themselves through the hardship alone.
    
     2. Next, a family should talk openly about their experiences with each other. A lot of emotional festering can happen when feelings are not shared. It makes time for assumptions and blame to occur between the family members. When the members of the family feel like they can share their feelings openly, it leads to better understanding and love. Each member will know that they are not alone in feeling certain emotions. This will bring the family closer to one another, and help ease the burden of their suffering.

     3. The most important way to cope with a life-changing crisis is for the family to change their values and perspectives to see the fuller picture. The difficult event can either be seen as a thing that has destroyed their lives as a family, or it can be seen as a learning experience. The family can begin to ask different questions. Instead of asking 'Why did this awful things have to happen to us?', they can ask 'What can we learn from this experience?' Our thoughts effect every aspect of our lives more than I think most people realize. Because of the way our brains work, we can only view things in accordance with our emotional state. Decide to take control of your thoughts, and see things with a new light. View the experience in terms of a learning opportunity. Then take it one step at a time, together.

We can decide now what we will do when these situations occur. Choose to draw upon your resources. Choose to reach out to your family during these times, and support each other. Use these opportunities for the betterment of your family. Good things can, and will ensue.