You know that expression “When life gives you lemons, make lemonade”. Well, I think after this story that expression should be changed to “When life gives you a flood, make a swimming pool” That is what happened in a train station in Sweden recently and the story is just remarkable.
I never understood that expression anyway, it suggests lemons are a bad thing and you have to make use of them. Lemons are so useful anyway. If life gives you lemons, that is great, you can use them for cooking, drinking, flavoring, and so much more. A flood, on the other hand, is a disaster. Not for the people of Uppsala. They had a large amount of rainfall recently and it resulted in widespread flooding. One of the worst places hit was the train station with several inches of water recorded. While some stayed indoors, others went straight for that station!
Cooling down
It is worth noting that this was not your usual winter flood, the temperature outside at the time was 33º Celsius. So the locals were looking for any way to cool off in this record heat, and they found it. Pictures went viral of people bringing floats, swimming togs and more to the station and bathing in the makeshift pool as commuters pass by in the background.
The incredible story is a lovely reminder that we have to make the most of what life throws at us. Everyone will be hit with setbacks and problems. It is not whether you are hit but what you do about it when you are hit that matters. The people of Uppsala in Sweden did the right thing, they saw a potential catastrophe and tried to turn it into something positive. So as the new saying goes “When life gives you a flood, make a swimming pool”.
