My version of bringing cookies to the office after summer break

Last week, I flew London Heathrow to Newark where we landed on the tarmac so hard, the plane rebounded and went back into the air. As we climbed, the plane kept dropping, making my stomach feel like we were on a rollercoaster. People threw up; one woman in front of me splashed water on her face from her plastic water bottle; fathers had brave faces for their children; I asked the solo female traveler on my right if she was okay. When we finally reached a steady altitude, the captain told us what had happened: a strong gust of wind made it unsafe to land at the last second, so we had to pull back up to avoid a potential crash.

In the minutes before we heard anything over the intercom—and I mean minutes—I felt oddly calm about our possible demise. It wasn’t because I’ve achieved everything I want in life (I haven’t) or because my affairs are perfectly in order (they’re not). Looking back on it, I genuinely think I was calm because of the community of inspiring people I get to spend time with—especially my colleagues, who I spend more time with than my own family and friends just by having a 9-5.

Ralph Waldo Emerson said that while we don’t remember every meal we’ve eaten or book we’ve read, they have made us who we are. I wonder if he’d extend this idea to human interactions. While we might not recall every conversation we’ve ever had, we tend to remember how people make us feel, based on the content and tone of those conversations. Just as negative interactions at work can erode your sense of well-being, consistently positive ones can build up a kind of emotional resilience. In the moments when you’re unsure if you’ll see tomorrow, it’s the strength of those fortifications that might just hold you steady.