Sunday morning we were loading up, getting ready to drive to church when I decided to let the dogs out one more time. Our two barn cats, Iris and Athena happened to be on the carport.
Candy, our miniature poodle went over to see Iris. Then Rambo, the other poodle followed. Iris got a bit unsettled and walked away briskly. Then Sonny, our black lab mix followed. Iris began to run which was her first mistake. This caused the dogs to all give chase. Her second mistake was running up one of the many oak trees on our property. She was up about 8 feet and then Sonny jumped up against the tree causing Iris to keep climbing. When she got near the top, about 35 feet above the ground, she realized she was stuck. If dogs could laugh and trash talk, they would have been. Iris was hopelessly stuck.
Now I had to figure out how to get her down. My tallest extension ladder was 12 feet and probably extended out another 10. My wife suggested backing my pickup truck up to the tree and putting the ladder in the bed. That gave me about an additional 3 feet. I set the ladder in and propped it against the tree. Then I began to climb.
I really hate heights. Air travel doesn’t bother me but anything else, such as the Arch in St. Louis, the observatory at the Empire State Building, or the Space Needle in Seattle DOES make me sweat. I bravely began to climb, not wishing to look down. Barb and Allie held the ladder at the bottom. Iris looked down as I inched towards her. The truck, ladder, and my 5 foot 9 inch height still left me short, even though I was standing on the second-to-the-top rung of the ladder. I held the tree in a death grip with my right arm and beckoned to Iris with my left. Even though she must have been nervous, you couldn’t tell. She wandered towards my hand and stopped to lick her paws. Then she looked at me as if to say “What are you doing up here? I got this!” After about 20 minutes on the ladder, I managed to coax her close enough to grab her by the ear. Then she yowled and dug her claws into my arm. I pulled her down and cradled her like a spikey football. As I inched down the ladder, it occurred to me just how cool cats look under pressure.
Years ago, a research team studied the refugees who crossed the Pacific Ocean from Cambodia to the United States. This was a treacherous crossing and not every boat made it. A boat would swamp or a storm would hit and the people on the boat would freak out and start thrashing about. Eventually, the boat would take on too much water and sink, drowning everyone. Yet every boat that safely arrived had someone onboard that remained calm under pressure. Their calm was contagious. Even in a crisis, people managed to keep their heads.
We saw this with the US Airways flight that crash-landed in the Hudson River back in 2009. Now I fly nearly every week and when the plane arrives at the gate and the “DING” sounds, my elbows start flying along with the other passengers and we all madly try to deplane at once. I can’t imagine what would happen if water was coming through the floorboards of the plane, yet the passengers of Flight 1549 calmly exited the plane. All accounts point the calm demeanor of Captain “Sully” Sullenberger as he communicated to the passengers. His calm was contagious.
All of us deal with stressful situations. It takes a conscious effort to remain cool but if we do, there’s a good chance those around us will follow suit. If you’re nervous before a presentation, mentally prepare to display calm and take some deep breaths. If you appear calm, as if the audience doesn’t bother you a bit, you’ll be amazed at how people will pay attention to what you’re saying and not silently criticizing your nervousness.
It certainly worked for Iris and the passengers on Flight 1549. I know it would work for you! Take some time this week to begin rehearsing your “cool as a cat” skills. Make it a routine and you’ll find it becomes second nature to you.
