Reaction vs Response

Reactions can be costly. They have lost games, they have gotten people fired, they have hurt people, reactions have even stateed wars. Responses can ease a situation and turn something that could have been dangerous into something good. My reactions sometimes get the best of me, and I end up trying to go back and clean up the mess I created. My reponses, normally help smooth over a situation and for the most part keep me level-headed. Recently I have been watching my reactions play out. Whether it is a news story, a debate, a credit card company trying to hose me, an opinion I don't agree with, or my kids acting out-it can be easy to react. I notice a lot of people who react through social media these days because it is easy to hide behind an avatar or a online screen name. Here is the deal, we need to take moments that come in conflict, a need to speak up, or even a need to grwo from an expereince-and we need to make these moments teachable. I can react all day long, and seomtimes it has got me in trouble; other times it has put me in a position to have to issue an apology. As I grow older, I am am aware of when I need to respond versus react. This week was a little crazy in our household-we had a vacation with lots of family under one roof, my kids had bed time battles, I ran into a tree with my car(sliding on ice), and life happened. IN these times of craziness-and my life has plenty of them-I get to decide whether I respond or react. Sometimes I pick wrong, and end up wishing I didn't-so here is to a day when I say-let's respond not react to the things that come our way. Your life will be better for it, your day will be better for it, and those in your life whether family, friend, co-worker, or whomever-will appreciate you for it.