"On Choices"

Time spent in my own garden is rare.  As a self-employed gardener, my clients’ gardens and their needs are always placed before my own.  At this time of the year the to-do list for them is staggering.  I put blinders on my eyes as I pull into my driveway.  It is that bad.    

I’m not sure how it happened that I arrived home at a decent hour today, but I did.  There was still plenty of daylight left and, after feeding myself, I had the energy to head outdoors.

The decision was made to work in the part of my backyard most visible from inside.  The weeds are thick so it was hands-and-knees kind of work, the kind that frees one’s mind for thought.

Recently I read a meme with the quote, “It costs $0.00 to be decent.”  While a true statement, it costs the same amount to be a jerk.  The difference between the two is the result of a choice made.

choice:  an option; a decision; an opportunity to choose or select something  

Choice is a part of everyday living—What am I going to eat; how do I dress; where do I go; what do I do; how do I get there and when?  As you consider it, choice is presented in a non-stop manner in daily life. 

In addition, society has made it a priority to make certain each and every person is satisfied, young and old alike. The list of choices seems endless when purchasing a car, carpeting, furniture, an appliance for the home, planning a vacation.  Mankind's narcissistic appetite for self-satisfaction seems to be driving this state.

There is a prevalent approach in dealing with children, allowing them to choose their food, their clothing, the activities of their lives.  Treating children as people is a positive; however,  I wonder if it doesn't become a bit overwhelming for a kid.  I know it can be for an adult.    

Consider, however, the choices made as to how one lives his/her life, not just the decisions affecting the physical, outer aspect of it.

As I dug through the weeds, I found myself thinking about how we choose the kind of people we want to be throughout our lives, beginning at an early age.  Sometimes they are conscious decisions, other times unconscious.  They often are a result of a personal experience in our lives, a choice made which places us on a path other than the one we had been on.

When I was a young girl, my older brother brought a typewriter into our home to work on a school project.  I vividly remember it sitting on the card table in the middle of the living room with instructions to not touch it.  It was the first time I had seen such a machine at close range, and my curiosity took over.  I couldn’t resist messing with it.  When questioned, I denied my actions.  The lie felt worse than the disobedience, and the seed of truth and honesty was planted within and began to grow.

Children can be cruel, ridiculing and making fun of one another.  For the child on the receiving end of such treatment, a choice is often made—to never treat others in that same manner or to “get ‘em before they get you.”  I know one young woman whose mantra is “Do unto others as you’d have others do unto you,” the result of being treated badly not only by peers but an adult teacher as well.  Besides being the foundation of how she lives her life, it is what she teaches her children as well.  It is a choice she made. 

I choose if I am going to be kind or unkind; forgiving instead of bitter, spiteful, vindictive; loving and compassionate rather than hateful and distant or antagonistic; cooperative and humble instead of proud and boastful; generous rather than selfish and self-serving; decent rather than a jerk.  I could go on and on.  How I live my life, the kind of person I choose to be is in my lap, in my mirror.  That never falls on another person’s doorstep.

Free will and free choice is a provision given to man by his Creator.  Use it carefully and wisely, not only in determining allegiance to Him—or not—but in living life.  Choices matter. 

"If you are not willing to serve Him, then choose today who you will serve.  As for me and my family, we will serve the Eternal."