Illustration: Peter C. Espina/GT

Did you ever have a fire of anger burning up inside you, ready to explode? Yeah. Me too. What did I do? I lifted up my intern and threw her out of the window. My office is on the 7th floor by the way.

Only I did it in my mind. If there is one thing I've learned after turning 30, it is how to live with my emotions. Many try to control them, ignore them or find some distractions. I don't. I feel them and live with them.

Ask any of my relatives, and they will tell you my childhood image is forever linked with my emotions. I lashed out at others constantly when I was in a bad mood. I cried a lot and easily sank into depression. I was emotionally disconnected with my family because I found it hard to control my emotions.

Emotion, the combination of thoughts and sensations, is a scary thing, probably because many of us do not know how to handle it. I've learned the hard way that emotions are there for a reason. They are sending you a message.

Like the intern I mentioned above who was constantly driving me nuts. She is the opposite of reporter's material in many ways. On her first day, I asked her to do some research. She panicked and left the office without letting me know. On her second day, I gave her a brief introduction about how to do news gathering. She called in sick the next day. On her third day, she screwed up an interview and apologized repeatedly. I was angry. The younger me would have lost her temper and figuratively thrown the intern out of the window. But the older and wiser me decided to get control of myself before making an outburst that could harm my professional reputation.

So I took a deep breath, emptied my mind and sat down facing the window. Slowly, I started to view my emotions as something separate from who I am.

I could see the emotions of anger and irritation roiling out of control, like floods trying to sweep over me. I did nothing but watch, as if they were not my emotions, but rather simply things that happen to me, like the rain falling on the earth. Slowly I could see them disappearing into the deep ocean.

I think all people have their own way to feel emotions. One of my friends made a rule for herself that she would drink three cups of water before yelling at others.

Over the long term, regular exercise and mind-stilling activity like meditation, yoga and tai chi are really helpful. Alternately, keep yourself away from the people who make you emotional. For me, that's mainly men.

I never heard from that intern again. I guess she has saved herself through distancing herself from me. But terrible interns keep coming. I have nowhere to hide.

So at the end of their internship, I guess I will give them a certificate and an electricity and water bill. Then I will say, "Hey, sweetie. Here is how much you've wasted our electricity and water. Good luck with your future career."

This article was published on the Global Times Metropolitan section Two Cents page, a space for reader submissions, including opinion, humor and satire. The ideas expressed are those of the author alone, and do not represent the position of the Global Times.