And She Rescued Herself

Confession time. I consider myself to be an educated, independent woman. I run a business, I make major decisions that affect not only myself but also those around me – my family and employees – on a regular basis. I don’t particularly want to be dependent on anyone, so why,   oh why do I occasionally glare over at my husband when times are tough, willing him with all my might to figure stuff out. To be a man. To fix it. To take care of me.

I’m embarrassed, writing these words, yet if we’re being honest, I have had those thoughts over the years, however fleetingly they’ve come and gone. The idea of being rescued is surely rooted in our society, in the stories and fables we tell our children and in modern stories too, in movies and TV shows.

But the thing is, sitting around waiting to get rescued rarely turns out very well. Where there is a rescue also lies a debt that will one day have to be paid, one way or another. I’m sure there are exceptions to this, but speaking in general terms I do feel that this is a fair statement. I’ll also go out on a limb and say that most of us have wished, at one time or another (and however fleetingly) that someone would come along and make whatever problem we were experiencing just go away.

And as appealing as getting rescued may sound, here’s the kicker. When you reject the possibility that someone is going to show up to save you, you are left with only one option and that is to figure it out, fix what’s broken, patch the holes and move on. It may not be most people’s first choice, and it’s certainly not the easiest choice, but for many of us it’s the only one we have. But the thing is, it’s also the one that is going to bring us the greatest satisfaction in the end.

So, go forth bravely and conquer any obstacles that show up. You’ve done it before and you will do it again because that’s who you are: your very own superhero.