Pepper,

I am in a difficult situation and uncertain of what to do. There are no good options, and regardless of what I decide, at least one person will become irrevocably angry and hurt. If I do nothing, the situation will be carried forward, involve more people, and more than likely worsen. Any suggestions?

It sounds as if you are describing the proverbial “stuck between a rock and a hard place” condition. I feel for you! Like you, I have, at times, found myself in unforeseeable situations faced with impossible choices. I’m still not sure how I got into or out of those scrapes, but somehow I did.

One of the first things I try to do when things get messy or scary is to become very objective, which is hard to do when I’ve become lost in my story. We all have a story we tell others and ourselves. Our storylines often cast us as heroes and villains, victors and victims, or wise teachers and lost souls. Our stories are an important part of our myth-journeys, and through their chapters and challenges, we learn a great deal about life. But if we become mired in the mazes of our own minds and forget that we are both the story and the storyteller, we suffer. Those around us do as well.