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Every year at the Rose Bowl Parade in Pasadena, CA, an individual of distinction is selected to be the Grand Marshal.
On January 1, 2010, the 121st Parade Grand Marshal was Captain Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger III, the celebrated hero who landed the U.S. Airways Flight 1549 in the icy waters of the Hudson River in New York, NY in January 2009.
His ride in the Rose Bowl Parade leading thousands of flower-bedecked floats was a lot more fun and stress-free than when he safely landed in full view of many New Yorkers, saving the lives of 155 passengers and crew.
In one of many interviews, Sullenberger admitted that he had always wanted to see the Rose Bowl Parade in person.
He certainly got his wish, and how!
What makes Sullenberger an overnight hero is not just that he made a successful landing and averted a disastrous crash. He is celebrated because when faced with a startling dilemma, he assessed the situation, made a decision and braced himself and his crew for impact.
The ending could have been very different, of course, but Sullenberger could not hesitate while he pondered indefinitely.
Most of us will never be faced with the heart-pounding scare that must have gripped Sullenberger that day, but we will all be faced with some situations that require us to brace for impact.
Like Rosa Parks whose refusal to surrender her bus seat to a white passenger in Montgomery, Alabama in 1955 unwittingly sparked the civil rights movement, you may one day discover yourself in a new role that you never expected.
Most of us, of course, are not faced with tough situations that are as dramatic and far-reaching as those faced by Sullenberger and Parks. But our crises can be devastating, nonetheless.
You may have lost your job, your life savings or your hope. To survive these you must take similar actions to the heroes mentioned above.
Assess your situation, determine what you can do right now, then use immediate tools and resources that can help you and take bold action.
You may never be called upon to save a nation or a plane load of people, but if you can brace for the impact of your personal adversity, you can emerge successful.
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This article appeared in an issue of the Color Your Life Happy Newsletter that goes out every week to subscribers. If you’d like to get more encouragement and uplift like this, subscribe to the newsletter here or in the signup box on the top left of this page under Get Weekly Encouragement and your first issue will be on its way.
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