When it Rains, it Pours

Have you heard of Murphy’s Law? Basically it states “whatever can go wrong, will go wrong.” I learned about it years ago in grade school, then again in college but never thought much of it. Then last year, as we were preparing for his deployment, I kept hearing the term. I read it on military message boards, facebook groups and even when talking/getting advice from other. They teased about how everything would be fine when they sent their loved ones off, then the next day, disaster would hit. I was fortunate to not have experienced much of this Murphy’s Law when he was away at Basic and AIT. However, I don’t think I will be that lucky this time. In my first week back home, our washer has broke, our printer broke, a light came on in my car and wifi went out 🤦🏼‍♀️.

When I discovered the washer was not working, I was beyond frustrated. Like HOW does it break when no one has used it?! I was the last one to use it and it worked perfectly. That was only three weeks ago, what changed?! Water was not filling into the base so I got on Youtube thinking that surly a wire had just come loose or some other easy fix. After hours of plugging and unplugging things, turning on and off the water, opening and closing compartments, I finally called the warranty company. (Side note: That 5 year warranty we purchased with the washer was worth every penny haha. And because of this situation, I will never ever not buy a warranty ever again). I was pretty heated but I am so grateful for that warranty. They were about to get someone out to me within 48 hours. Last time we had a similar issue, they were able to fix it on the spot. I was optimistic that this time it would be the same way… but nope. I have no idea what actually broke. The guy told me but it was way too complicated for me. What I did pick up is that it needs a specific part replaced that they can only get from the manufacturer and that it would take a minimum of a week.

After I realized it was not going to work, I was fuming. Like if it were possible, steam would have come out of my nose and ears. You would think that as more things started to not work, that I would escalate even more, but strangely enough, the more things that broke, my attitude changed from frustration to “is that all you got”. It even surprised me, but I think I began to realize that 1) I can handle whatever breaks/malfunctions/decides not to work. Whether I can fix it or just find a way to survive without, its not the end of the world. 2) Its going to be okay. It may feel like “everything” is going wrong, but its not. If a washer thats covered by a warranty, a car light, a printer thats only $50 and wifi are my biggest worries, then I am doing alright.

A lesson I began to learn last year and am continuing to learn this year is perspective. Yes, all these things are frustrating and inconsistent but they could be a lot worse. Instead of focusing on everything that is going wrong, I am choosing to be grateful for all that is going right and proud of myself for figuring out all the things that aren’t. Its tough  because these are all the things my husband would usually handle, but I am choosing to think of it as a growth opportunity. This may be the first but I am sure its not the last time during this deployment or even life that I will have to deal with a broken appliance. I know he is dealing with things he never has had to do before either. I also know that we would both rather be together and not having to do these things but we just have to hang in there long enough until he gets back.

If you are going through something similar where it just feels like “whatever can go wrong, is going wrong.”, try to stop and find something to be grateful for. I know sometimes its very hard but theres always something. It won’t solve everything, but it will help change your outlook and attitude. I know it did for me.