Have you ever been in a situation of sudden change

                      when you could foresee danger, pain, or death?  

Then you know that feeling. That feeling of I-wish-I-was-somewhere-else shivers through your body. It happens when you go into surgery, have a car accident, or give birth. 

Strangely, some like that feeling and voluntarily jump off high places with a bungee cord, jump out of airplanes with parachutes, cliff dive into deep waters, and love rollercoasters. Do you? Do you push your limits for the adrenaline rush that comes with being out of control?

For those of us who want control, these activities are nearly incomprehensible. However, if you are a traveler you know about the much slighter adrenaline rush of stepping into a grocery store in a foreign country and navigating the choices and currencies. You know about hunting for the right bus and figuring out the payment system. You understand that a missed flight or a missed bus can cost you an extra ticket.

If you are miserable because you need to control all your surrounding interactions, then house sitting and pet sitting is not for you. The best-laid plans can shift and throw you off. 

Kim, our new friend in Gosport, UK, picked us up at 3:15 AM to drive us to the bus station 25 minutes from our pet sitting assignment. Would you do this for a new friend you’ll probably never see again? We caught the bus on time to get to London for our Eurostar train heading for Paris. In two and half hours, yes, 2.5 hours, we were in Paris. I heard a brief announcement about an unexpected stop and ‘if we are more than ten minutes late you will be able to transfer your purchased ticket to the next ride.’

Our goal that day was to arrive in Châtillon, a village 25 minutes from Lyon, France for our next pet sitting assignment. Our hosts were taking off the next morning for India for a month. So, we thought. It was simple. Get a ride to the bus station, bus to the Eurostar, Eurostar train London to Paris, and the Paris to Lyon train. 

Glitch #1 The Eurostar Train was late because of an unplanned stop. We then missed the Paris-Lyon train.  Do you know that feeling of bungee jumping? We must figure out the bureaucratic procedures to get a replacement ticket in the train depot. Off we trotted to the Administration and once we found it, there was a long, slow line. We, then, needed to go through the bowel of Paris on the Metro to get to the right train station before the last train of the day left for Lyon. The bowel of Paris takes you 4-6 layers under, tunnels in all directions full of people scurrying to their platforms, and no customer service attendants to help you find your departure platform. By then, we had less than an hour to arrive at the Lyon train station and find the right dock for the train.

Our imagination takes flight. We thought, what if we miss that train, what if we aren’t there when Bernard and Monique need to leave for the airport, what if we cause them to miss their flight and connections to India?  Do you have moments when your imagination is unwelcome?

Don’t you think it’s odd that just when you feel most panicked, is the time you need to think calmly? I wonder if you can practice or plan for such a time?

Whew, we made the train on time. In Lyon, we rented a car from a private party (OuiCar) and it took more than an hour to find the woman with the car. Then it was dark. We drove through the city of Lyon at closing time and made our way to Châtillon by the end of a very long day. Monique and Bernard greeted us with tears in their eyes and saying their trip to India canceled out.

Glitch #2 was the borders were all closed due to covid. Our plans collapsed. You know that panicky feeling of jumping out of an airplane hoping the parachute will open? We felt it deep into our bellies and imagined all sorts of difficulties ahead. 

When you panic, you ‘awfulize.’ You imagine the worst case scenario. We could get covid and die. The hotels closed and we couldn’t find a place to stay. We could be stuck for life. Our kids would need us but we couldn’t fly. 

We ended up in France, amid miles of Beaujolais vineyards, at our hosts’ home, who happened to have a completely furnished apartment above their living quarters. They said to us immediately, “This is yours for the duration of the lockdown.” The parachute did open.

Lockdown in France meant we were required to take a written permission slip with all our information on it, including the reason for being out of the house, every time we went to the grocery store. No one was allowed out, even to walk or bike. By the greatest of blessings, our temporary home was in the countryside. We could walk outside for 3-4 hours and not see a single person. We grew fitter and stronger than ever in several months.

Glitch #3 Our planned flight was canceled. Remember how the rules changed almost daily about who could fly where? The airlines were also in disarray. We were canceled and canceled and canceled. One day I spent nine hours on hold before I could speak to a ticket agent. To add to our feeling of panic, we heard about a woman paying $20,000 for a ticket back to the US. We were on a roller coaster of real life. We weren’t amidst changes that results in pain or death, maybe, but we feared the unknown. The fear that surrounded us was hard to combat. Do you know Carrie Underwood’s song Jesus Take The Wheel? We gave it up and let go of our need for control. Eventually, we got a flight back to the States.

To sum it up, Travel will test you. When you go slow traveling as a pet sitter and house sitter plans can change abruptly. You will not be able to control all things around you, but you can decide in advance how you will cope. I call my strategy the “I got this” mantra. When you face a panic situation, just say it out loud, “I got this.”   

Here are seven actions you can take immediately to quell the panicky feelings of unexpected change.

1. Stop
2. Breathe
3. Assess
4. Evaluate
5. Make a new plan
6. Do it
7. Repeat 

Note to self:  “I got this” method is good for every change I face. This method works for health, Relationships, and travel. Yes, it’s an evergreen tool and ever-present when needed.

Do you have a coping strategy for times of panic?

Get Private Coaching In View Of Travel Via Petsitting by emailing me
petsitandtravel@gmail.com 

Originally Published on https://www.claimingfreedom.com

SharonAnn Hamilton Travel Lifestyle Guide

I've always loved to read. Stories invited me into adventures but left me hungry for action. Why couldn't I experience adventures for myself? At first I thought lack of MONEY was the problem. Then career came and I thought TIME was the problem. So I set out on a journey to prove that I could live my own adventures regardless of money or time. Now I teach others how.