A few weeks before my European vacation, a colleague and I were discussing his failed travel day. After several unanticipated flight delays, he arrived in Atlanta 8 hours later than expected. I shared in his misery and said, “I’m realizing there is very little you can control when you travel.” To which he replied, “Kennedy, there is absolutely nothing you can control when you travel.”

Perhaps he’s some kind of oracle or modern day prophet because there really was not a single thing I could control during our trip to Poland and Italy.

I prepared for our trip by scouring Pinterest for non-touristy restaurants, calling my best friend for her experienced recommendations, and over-organizing our luggage. Unfortunately, nothing prepared me for the Delta-flight-food induced stomach issues, a diverted plane to Warsaw, a lost passport, 100-degree weather, and a global IT outage disrupting flights around the world.

I don’t know how Corey and I maintained our composure. Surprisingly, there were only 5 minutes of tears throughout the entire two weeks (and because they happened at 3 AM, I’d argue they were very justified).

We were not perfectly cheery everyday, but I think we understood that there was no point in being miserable or freaking out when we hit another inconvenience. Instead, we’d jokingly say, “Just add it to the tab.”

Other than our choices, there really are only two things we can control in life: our response and our attitude.

Like most of America, I’ve been obsessively watching the summer Olympics, and this concept is on display in every backstory segment NBC shoves down our throats.

These elite athletes work and train day in and day out in the hopes of achieving eternal glory. But regardless of their innate talent, team resources, and overall support system, it is up to the individual athlete to determine their response and their attitude in the face of adversity.

Sunisa Lee and Simone Biles each faced tremendous personal challenges leading to these Olympics. By now. we have all heard their stories of grit, perseverance, and forward motion.

What I appreciated most from these women is the acknowledgement that not every day on the “come back” journey was a win. Simone herself said, “Some days in the gym were one step forward, five steps back.” And yet, by choosing to respond to with an “I’m going to do this” attitude, she indeed made her come back at the highest level.

Now, we are not all elite athletes. Just take one look at my Peloton stats and you’ll have no doubt at where my athleticism ranks. But there is still a lesson for all of us here in focusing on what you can actually control when met with adversity.

Maybe it’s not even adversity but just a day where nothing goes according to plan. Nothing is frictionless and you’re just fed up. You can choose to acknowledge the friction of life and carry on with joy anyways.

Corey and I still found so much to enjoy during our travels from hell. We enjoyed great meals, experienced hundreds of years of history, and made memories we’ll look back on for years to come. I am grateful for the once in a lifetime experience and will take the lessons we learned on every trip we go on.

For instance, I will be the sole person responsible for passports from now. (Shoutout to the U.S. Embassy in Warsaw for both helping us and shaming us. Did you know emergency passports are a thing? They’re also purple.)

Anyways, response and attitude. It’s all we’ve really got.