I believe in making the best of bad situations. My recent, unplanned trip to help family in distress happened to take me to a place I’d been planning to visit in coming months to do some research. I, of course, spent most of my time tending to family but I still had brief periods to myself. I used those to travel to places I needed to get a sense of for a future project.
I also had the opportunity to revisit a place that inspired a past project. Murder in G Major features a key scene set in an abandoned asylum, the fictional St. Dymphna’s. The “real” St. Dymphna’s is the derelict South Carolina Sanatorium, a former TB sanatorium in the State Park/Dentsville area of Columbia, South Carolina. The sanatorium is eerie and overgrown and full of secrets, just the sort of place to feature in a murder mystery.
Do you find silver linings? How do you make the best of bad? Comment on the blog or join the conversation on social media.
Bad situations, new situations, unexpected changes, unwanted circumstances can be opportunities to learn and grow. Instead of asking, “Why am I here?” or–more likely in my case–“Get me out of here!” I’m trying to ask instead, “What can I learn?” Easier said than done for sure. Who knew growing up was a life-long process?