Work was crazy as usual… Sometimes, being able to think clearly was as easy as trying to manage your hair after it comes tumbling loose… Her job often felt chaotic. Events would often unfold in a frenzied, hurried pace. Remaining calm was a challenge… Often she felt as if, no matter what she did she was doing the wrong thing. I.e. If she called to verify a price for a customer, others would grumble and fuss because the line was not ‘moving along.’ Or, if she tried to help a customer load his/her bags another one would become indignant because she had not (wasn’t able) to reply to them immediately… By the same token, other employee’s might fuss if you didn’t call them ‘soon enough,’ or stop flashing your distress light ‘soon enough’ etc etc.

At home things felt no less grim. Just the other day, Norra had tried to make soup for the family’s dinner…. Mother was exasperated because there was not enough meat in the broth… Norra had vacuumed all of the downstairs and swept, but when Mother came home she was upset because some coffee cups were out and two spoons were on the counter. (As a matter of fact, she started fussing about the kitchen before she greeted her daughter..) The list went on an on… The heart-ache and frustration she felt was similar to having a braid that was bound to tightly.. It causes throbbing on both sides of the head, and every time you move it causes more pain… Both at home and at work she felt this same way.. Regardless of what action she took - it almost always seemed to be the ‘wrong’ move, or insufficient at best…