Smashed Windshield & a Lesson in Energy

It was a cool Friday commute to work on the interstate that day. I was grateful that traffic seemed light - as I needed some peaceful space to set my energy and intentions for the day - as I was feeling a bit bogged down and overworked.

My eyes caught a car about a mile ahead. It's brake lights were blinking - some sort of loose wire - or something. I was wondering if it was traveling to the same destination? Maybe I could memorize the back of the car and let them know.

As my eyes were trying to discover the make and model of that black car ahead, a blob appeared in my left-hand peripheral vision - up in the sky.

It was dive-bombing straight towards my car!....

And SMASH!!!!💥

I yanked the wheel to the shoulder of the interstate and hit the brakes - with my eyes half closed - waiting for the glass of my windshield to embed itself into my face.

It was only a split second. I had no idea what had just happened.

No idea. Absolutely no idea what happened.

I quickly reacted by looking in my rearview mirror to see if there was anything on the road behind me...and to make sure I wasn't about to get rear-ended.

Thank God, no car was coming straight at me.

Then, I saw the blob - whatever it was - dropping into the ditch.

My car came to a stop. I was safely on the shoulder. The driver's-side of my windshield was shattered - but thankfully intact.

I was in shock. My heart was pounding a million beats per minute. My back was in spasms.

Cars, trucks, and semis were flying by me at 75+ miles an hour.

Now what? I had no idea what to do next. No idea.

I saw a break in traffic coming...so I got out of my car and started walking back in the ditch.

I found the culprit. A big bird - of some sort. I had no idea what kind. (Apparently this is a Sage Grouse)

At least I knew what caused this freaky incident...

I got back into the car and called my supervisor. I let them know I was going to be late and then called a windshield repair person for advice and then finished the drive to work - trying to look out the middle of my windshield. I had 15min of my commute left and I spent them trying to calm down.

I reached my work parking lot safely. I took several pics of my car for the repair guy and insurance, then walked into work...shell-shocked.

This is where the lesson of this story begins...

I walked into work to a crowd of people that was ready to check if I was ok and to hear the crazy story.

I recreated every part of the incident with vivid detail. I saw the group's faces empathizing with each twist and turn - of the story. They were so caring and offered help, support, and comfort. I was so grateful and could feel their empathy.

A couple hours later, I found myself telling the story again - to a new group of people, same result - compassion and empathy. I was very grateful - as it was a traumatic event - for sure.

But as I walked away, I felt even more drained than I had before the 2nd story time. It was almost if I ran my battery down by another 20%.

Then, my husband called - he finally had a break in his schedule and could talk...and I felt as though my battery dropped another 20%.

Then it hit me...

I was making things worse by sharing the story! I had stuck myself in a time loop of adrenaline, shock, worry, and fear....and I was the one caging myself!

I had a few minutes to sit down and calm down and do some breathing. That helped!

I decided to set my intention and change my energy. I was done reenacting the story. I was done bringing all of that nasty emotion and energy up again.

Reflection:

As I was commuting home that night (very slowly and gazing around the shattered spot), I was wondering how many times recently I had done this exact thing to myself? Had I kept talking about, telling stories about, gossiping about something - looking for support, empathy, or validation...and instead shot myself in the foot with a repeating loop of negative energy?

The answer was a very clear, "YES!"

Yucky! I am not sure why the universe helped me catch myself on that crazy day and helped me learn that very important lesson - but I am sure glad it did!

I don't think this lesson will be a quick fix - because as humans - we really like to belong, feel like we are a part of something, and feel heard; but I would much rather do that when I am bringing topics of joy, growth, gratitude, etc., not a giant steaming pile of negative energy!

May you be blessed as I was and choose the energy wisely that you bring to share with others, so that it increases the joy in your life and not the fear and fatigue.🙂