Page 29 - LSFlipFinalV7

NICHOLAS BOOTHMAN
The key was to neutralize their power. To disarm
them. To learn how to navigate these situations
without losing her sanity.
She thought back to her grandfather, a grizzled old
fisherman who had weathered countless storms at sea.
He used to say, "The sea will always be the sea. But
you can learn to sail."
That was it. She couldn't change the world. But
she could change how she reacted to it.
She took a deep breath, the first one she'd taken all
morning, it seemed. She felt of the air filling her lungs,
expanding her chest, and then followed it down,
willing her tummy to soften and rise with the gentle
pressure. A slow, steady exhale followed, carrying
with it the tension that had been clinging to her
shoulders like a persistent shadow. Another inhale,
long and deliberate, anchoring her in the present
moment, an island of calm amidst the swirling
thoughts.
It was a small act of defiance. A tiny assertion of
control in the midst of chaos.
She looked around the room again. The faces of
her colleagues. The pressure in the air.
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