Life doesn't come with a pause button.
People react to the moment, and those reactions may range from a heroic rescue to an overreaction to a perceived threat.
But at a time when everyday activities are recorded on video and shared widely on social media, those spontaneous reactions often are commended or criticized by viewers who benefit from reflection and hindsight.
Those thoughts were prompted by a comment from Jefferson City police officer Collier Nichols, who told educators, "We're expected to be perfect in an imperfect situation."
The occasion was a continuing education project Tuesday for Jefferson City Public Schools middle and high school principals to learn how to improve relationships with students and law enforcement officials.
Training is important and improvement is desirable, but perfection is elusive, particularly when an unfamiliar situation elicits stress, anxiety, fear and other emotions.
Tammy Ridgeway, the school district's assistant superintendent for secondary education, offered an astute observation when she said, "The youth culture has changed, and so we have to understand it so we can respond (and) be effective in showing them how to behave in school, sometimes."
But no single, perfect, effective response exists.
The Safe Schools Act is an attempt to impose a uniform zero-tolerance prohibition on weapons in the school. The motivation is reasonable, but it is hardly perfect; some ludicrous applications have been reported.
Deanne Fisher, principal of the Jefferson City Academic Center, noted students "may not be more mature, but they are forced into situations that make them have to respond like a grown-up would."
Ridgeway added: "Social media has made it where you can hide behind things, and you can say things that you wouldn't say face-to-face ... As a district, we want to deal with each student as a person."
Youth culture is changing and social media continues to evolve.
Educators and law enforcement officers are working - in this instance, together - to respond appropriately to spontaneous, unique situations.
Life without a pause button has never been more challenging.