Just when everything seems as normal as can be ... in fact, just when we almost break into wide yawns from the dull normalcy of it all, that's when something outside our control can break in with a word or experience that changes everything — perhaps forever.

Do you remember when the earthquake hit the San Francisco Bay area in 1989, causing the famous collapse of the double-decker Bay Bridge? Its rumbling effect was felt far beyond the Bay area, insisting itself into the consciousness of everyone attending the World Series game that day in Oakland or watching it on television. The game went immediately off the air, but inside the stadium, priorities were rearranged in a hurry. In particular, I remember the words of one player about his experience. This was a professional athlete, probabl…