"If the oxygen masks should drop from the ceiling, put your own mask on first before assisting others." When you fly, the flight crew always gives those instructions.
They're not telling you to be selfish. They're telling you what works best for everybody. If you start helping the people around you without your mask on, you're going to pass out and become a liability.
So they tell you to get your mask on first, then see what you can do for the people around you.
I bet you know where I'm going with this. I bet you even know what your oxygen masks are: those things that restore your soul, give you energy, and put you back on your feet to face another day. Maybe even to dance through the day.
And I bet if we sat down to talk about this, you'd give me a whole boatload of excuses about why those masks just aren't a possibility right now--given this, that, and the other.
I bet these things because I've done that myself. I've helped other people all the way into full-blown, passed-out craziness.
And there's really nothing like experiencing that kind of craziness to give you a life-long passion for your own sanity.
So let me be your flight crew for just a minute. Stow the Hemmacher Schlemmacher catalog and listen up.
The oxygen masks are always in place for you. Get yours on. Breathe. Breathe. Breathe.
Then look around and see who needs help.