Words of Wisdom: Remaining Calm In The Middle Of A Storm | The Ismaili Canada

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Words of Wisdom: Remaining Calm In The Middle Of A Storm

October 30, 2020 | Canada

Remaining Calm In The Middle Of A Storm

by Jolette Jai and Chris Cade

While gunmen shot and killed five people at a taxi stand nearby, Martha Rivera Alanis led her students in singing songs, until the shootout finally ended. Martha told her 15 pupils to place their faces on the floor, and repeated over and over again that everything was going to be fine. Rivera led her students in singing songs, until the shootout finally ended.

How could she remain so calm in the midst of something that could have been so emotionally triggering? Because underneath it all, Martha was operating from a belief that everything is OK. In fact, it's something each and every one of us is capable of.

So, what was really going on in her brain that day? Inside our brains, we have neural pathways that determine our behavior. For example, if we take a certain route to work each day, we have created a neural pathway that tells us to take that certain route to work each day. Let's say we find out about a new route to work one day and decide to take this new route, then within our brains, a new neural pathway is formed for us to take a new route to work. Continued behavior in any direction creates a deeper pattern of a neural pathway in our brain.

By not reacting to the incredible shock and potential anxiety from a shootout happening right outside her window, Martha's brain chose a new neural pathway that day. She chose calm, connection and even play with the children. I'm not sure if that neural pathway of calm and connected behavior was already formed within Martha's brain or if she just chose that new calm and connected behavior in that moment for the first time. It doesn't really matter, actually. That's because one of the greatest discoveries in the field of brain science is that our brains have neuroplasticity. They can actually change and grow and follow new neural pathways at any time.

Unconscious limiting beliefs continue looping through our mind until we create a new positive, life-enhancing belief that will generate a whole new host of feelings and behavior in your body and mind.

So, what was really going on in her brain that day in her classroom? Martha's belief of 'everything is OK' was stronger in that moment than any feelings of fear or shock or anxiety that she may have been experiencing. Martha had developed her NEW belief that 'everything is OK' to such an extent that it overtook any other sensation or limiting belief that she may have been experiencing in that moment. Her bravery that day began in her mind. Remember, our brains can grow and change at any instant. Hers did. Mine has. Yours can too. And, it was in that instant that a horrendous shooting was happening just outside her schoolroom window, Martha's brain chose to follow a new neural pathway of calm, connection and support.

So, what about the children? Her incredible act of bravery actually held the space for a group of 15 children to not be traumatized by an event that could have otherwise been very traumatic for these kids. An event that may have imprinted patterns of fear and anxiety within these children's brains for years to come. Instead, Martha chose a different behavior that modeled calm, connection and fun for the kids.

In the middle of any storm, each of us has a choice to remain calm.

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WOW is designed to motivate and inspire, promote self-discovery and aid in continued personal development. Each column will present a powerful quote, metaphor, short parable or thought-provoking question, sourced and selected by experts in the personal development field.

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