Viktor Frankl wrote:
“Between stimulus and response, there is a space. That space is our power to choose our response. In our response lies our growth and freedom”.
This is probably the most valuable life lesson I have learned thus far.
Aggravating and sometimes hurtful situations happen frequently in life. Whether the accoster is a stranger in a car with road rage or a loved one spewing painful words during an argument. These destabilizing occurrences cannot be avoided.
We are all individuals, born into different families, with different upbringings. We may decipher situations differently and act upon them dissimilarly, without considering another person’s viewpoint or feelings.
It is during these situations that we must choose how to react. We must pause before proceeding with our response. Personally, I follow the three P’s: Pause, pray, and proceed.
Most of the time (not always, I am a human being, after all), I am able to quiet my head and heart before proceeding, offering grace rather than grit towards that person, place, or thing that is attempting to steal my inner peace.
I have worked hard to maintain peace in my soul and continue to work on keeping it there, although some days that is easier than others.
When I want to react to an unpleasant event negatively, I must remember only I am in control of my response and reaction to the stimulus. That ultimately, I am the only one who will have to live with the negative words or actions that I choose.
So today, I choose to be true to the spirit that God intended me to be. Today I choose peace.