Friday’s headlines never get the final word. Wait for Sunday’s edition.

The first report of a disaster is never the complete story, though it always sounds like a conclusion. One particular Friday looked entirely settled to everybody watching, and the people living through it had no way of knowing otherwise. What is being asked for is time before you write the ending. Waiting is not the same as pretending.

If something has just gone badly, resist deciding tonight what it means. Give it the weeks it needs before you draw a final line under it. Keep up the ordinary maintenance of your life in the meantime, and let the story stay open longer than your fear wants it to.