The seven year-old girl lay prone on the patient table in the cardiologist’s office.  Unsurprisingly for anybody who knew this delightful young lady, she peppered the doctor with questions. His replies conveyed about as much sensitivity as that of the blinking machine he was studying. When, without any preparatory commentary, the doctor turned his patient over to his assistant to administer an EKG, the normally strong-willed girl began to cry. Only when the wires were calmly connected did she relax.

Perhaps she was really reacting to the loss of personal control, a circumstance which bothers most people, whether in a medical facility or in ordinary, daily life.

In our current high-stress environment, exacerbated by daily outbreaks of senseless loss of lives, the issue of the undulating sands of control is evident wherever one looks.

Who, I thought, feels more devoid of control (a partial list for sure, and in no order of importance):

A policeman trying to balance his job requirements with the environment in which he/she functions

All of us devoid of ideas for making more headway on racism

A minimum wage participant in the service economy

An undereducated, father-free, 18 year-old African American male

A middle-aged white male unemployed for the first time ever

An affluent parent attempting to explain that an attitude of entitlement is not appropriate

An undocumented Hispanic immigrant

A parent trying to keep social media in proper perspective for her/his children

An Asian with high SATs, rejected by an Ivy League college which already has enough Asians

A striving woman in a large corporation

The New York Times editorial board after the election

A gay person who has yet to leave the closet

A Sanders acolyte

A parent attempting to interact with the typical urban school leader

A CEO whose job is dependent on his quarterly earnings report

A farmer whose income is importantly driven by the weather

A cab driver with no regular customers

A college student walking into an all-or-nothing final exam

A single parent filling out paperwork in a welfare office

A person shunning the ethic of consumption and attempting to live off the grid

An economist trying to discourse logically about 1%ers, which cut across all demographic lines

 

Or –a writer befuddled by the task of putting down his thoughts in a clearly articulated manner!

Note: Our heroine has a strong heart, accompanied by a mild case of PAC:  premature arrhythmic contraction, basically an occasional extra heartbeat. She has no restrictions on activity, which includes running in 2,000 meter races, and the PAC diagnosis will be revisited in six months. We love her.