Disaster strikes..then what?

I just read an article giving "8 Tips for..." It doesn't matter what the tips were for, as most of these advice articles, or "everyday hacks" articles are usually common sense, translated by an enterprising author into sale-able format.

I am a total patsy for these articles, simply because I suck up new ideas and clever approaches like a vacuum cleaner. Most have no application to anything I'm doing, but now and then, I hit upon a useful nugget with which to amaze my friends and family. Whether it's how to fold a t-shirt professionally, or how to separate egg yolks, or how to halve cherry tomatoes, I am always eager to find a clever and easy way to do it. What can I say? I'm a useless information junkie.

In any case, I read this article and was struck by a sentence at the end, a sort of coda to the piece, admitting that most of the body of the article was gleaned from personal experience, trial and error, and the inevitable frustration of doing things wrong often enough to figure out the RIGHT way.

"I hope that each of your journeys are as beautifully disastrous as mine was."

What a concept. (I am dismissing the obvious poor choice of verbs: "each...IS" not "each...ARE") The idea resonates with me. I tend to believe that everything happens for a reason, and that usually that reason is not punishment for bad behavior. If I fall down (and believe me, I have) the experience teaches me something, even if it's only to pick up my damn feet. If I burn the peas for dinner, by god, I know the next time that I had better pay attention OR use the microwave. (And incidentally, I learn how to remove the charcoaled peas from my favorite saucepan (boil water with baking soda, then scrub, scrub, scrub..) 

But..."beautifully disastrous"?  Yes. Every disastrous lesson I learn--and there have been a lot--in hindsight makes a pretty good story. Seeing the humor in the mundane crises, the slapstick that passes for daily life, the utter idiocy of most events makes it all a lot easier to handle. Nobody likes tales of woe, and if you listen to those tales long enough--even if they're your own, told only in your head--depression sets in and it gets harder and harder to get out of bed in the morning. Better by far to embrace the disastrous and think of it as gathering material for your next act, be it comedy or drama. I really believe that, if it were not for the (perceived) disasters in my life, I'd have missed out on some of the best parts.

Not to be a pollyanna about it, but there are silver linings to even the darkest clouds. You might have to wait a while and get some distance before you see it, but it's so trite because it's so true. So, here I am, wishing everyone great success...but, if that fails, I wish you beautiful disasters.