Pajay Haykins
HAYKINS’ CHRONICLES
3 min readAug 30, 2024

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The Hidden Blessing in Trauma: How Past Pain Shapes Our Present Caution

Photo by Elle Cartier on Unsplash

I got the inspiration for this article during my early morning walk today. On my way back, as I approached the junction of my street, I crossed the road from the left sidewalk— from my viewpoint— to the right sidewalk to head into my street. My earphones were on, and I was vibing to Jigga’s American Gangster album.

As I was crossing, I checked both sides of the road to ensure that no vehicle or motorcycle was approaching at a high speed or was too close. I did this for my safety, especially since I was using earphones. There have been past reports of people getting hit by vehicles, including trailers, while wearing earphones and listening to music on the road.

As I successfully crossed the road, it dawned on me that my actions—the way I crossed—were influenced by past trauma. This trauma stems from the precautions I took, driven by news reports and stories I’ve heard, watched, or listened to about accidents of people being hit by vehicles while wearing earphones and listening to music on the road.

The mark I left on the wall when I slipped and fell after leaving the bathroom.

A few weeks ago, I slipped and fell after leaving the bathroom, leaving a mark on the passage wall. The mark was from the bruise I got when I smashed my head…

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