Choices

I have been thinking about choices lately.  Everything we do has to do with choices we make.  Sometimes we are afforded time to make a decision, others are split second decisions.  I am particularly interested in the split second decisions.  Take for example a time when your spouse does something that he/she knows irritates you.  At least we think he/she knows it.  We think we have about a nano second to decide how we are going to react.  The problem is that most of us don't even give it a thought.  We just react!  But what do you suppose would happen if for just that moment you thought two things.   The first one is, "Do I honestly believe that he/she is doing this to irritate me?  Is is possible that perhaps it's not the case?" and the second one is, "If I react the way I usually do, do I honestly believe that we will have a different outcome than the usual one?"  Now add one more thing to the mix:  just shut up and breathe for a moment.  We don't have to be in a hurry to react.  In fact, maybe we don't need to react at all.  Maybe we just need to stop and breathe and take a moment to choose how we will respond.  I am convinced that if everyone took a moment to stop, breathe and think about what they were going to say when their spouse did something that bothers us, we would be a lot less reactive, and much more proactive.  The key here is don't wait for your spouse to do it--you be the grown-up.  But the choice is up to you.