Lt. Commander Foster - Life Hacks
Jamie LeBlanc
(( T’Mar’s Quarters, USS Constitution-B)).
That part of you which hid was an interesting thing. Because every element of yourself could be good or bad. It could be weak or strong.
Consider the person who focused on the present. Was that good? If they slowed down, lived in the moment, were present for others and enjoyed life – that was healthy. If they put blinders on and failed to take actions that would benefit them in the future that was unhealthy. And at the same time there would be another person out there who was always focused on getting something done to make tomorrow better but never able to enjoy today.
So whatever your weakness was it could be someone else’s greatest strength or biggest addiction. And your greatest strength will be the thing someone else completely avoids.
Foster: Sure, an unhealthy dark side drives people to the heights of narcissistic grandeur or the depths of self-destruction. But consider, if you get in there and work on that dark side, come to terms with it, strengthen it, that can become your bravery, your strength in the face of adversity, your anger at righteous causes or your empathy for other’s distress.
T’Mar: I thought that I had to find a way to ::she paused, finding the right word:: to purge myself of the dark side. It never occurred to me to essentially embrace it’s existence in order to heal.
Cade offered an empathetic smile.
Foster: You’ll never be able to truly kill any part of yourself. Bury it and it will just come back stronger, meaner and nastier at the times when you’re the most tired and least able to control it. Better to soothe it, treat it gently, make peace with it and build it into something that works for you.
T’Mar: Indeed. It certainly sounds simple in theory, but I do not expect it to be so in practice. None of this process has been simple.
He shook his head slowly. He knew that it was a long hard road, and even after decades of being clean and sober it was still a conscious choice every day to remain clean, focused, healthy.
Easier now? For sure. He had changed his identity. Now he was the person who ran early in the morning, checked in with other people, made better choices on the regular.
But those were still choices.
Foster: It isn’t simple. Or easy. But it is manageable. You can do it, and you can always make small steps forward.
No zero sum days. That had been his rule when he first started. No day could be zero. No day would backslide. Even if he only made the tiniest step forward, a step forward was a step forward.
T’Mar: I don’t suppose you know any shortcuts?
He caught her look and chuckled.
Foster: I wish. But, surround yourself with good people. That makes it much easier. Write things down in a place only you can see, that also makes it easier. And before you make a bad decision, take a walk. Those are my three hacks.
Simple, easy things. Maybe even dumb things, but they worked. They really worked. Because they forced you to slow down, think more and work with people who wanted you to succeed.
He was sure that T’Mar could do it if she put her mind to it. And he was willing to be one of those good people she hung around with to help her on the way.
~*~
~fin for now~
~*~
Lt. Commander Cade Foster
Chief Medical Officer
USS Constitution-B
~Julian Beck
E239010ST0