The Power of Personal Choice

I recently sent a little tweet into cyberspace that read: “Dear adult person, your mother isn’t responsible for the choices you’re making today. I mean that in the nicest way. Choose well.”

Immediately, the questions rolled in. Let me repeat my answer. It wasn’t a pointed message. I was simply thinking of how parenting comes without a manual. Granted, some people fail miserably at it, but most people do okay with their on the job training. So, why are so many adult offspring stuck blaming their past for their present and squandering their future? I believe it’s often because they don’t understand the power of personal choice.

J. Martin Kohe once said, “Any person who recognizes this greatest power…the power to choose, begins to realize that he is the one that is doing the choosing and that friends, although they mean well, cannot do his choosing for him, nor can his relatives. Consequently, he develops real self-confidence based upon his own ability, upon his own action, and upon his own initiative.”

We make choices all day long, beginning with our attitude, which reminds me of a story… One day a very wise old lady looked in the mirror and found she only had three remaining hairs on her head. Being a positive soul, she said, “I think I’ll braid my hair today.” She braided her three hairs and had a great day. Several mornings later, she noticed she only had two hairs remaining. “Hmm,” she said. “Two hairs? Perhaps a center part.” She parted her two hairs and had a great day. A week or so later, she realized she only had one hair left on her head. “One hair,” she mused. “I know! A pony-tail will be perfect!” And again she had a great day. The next morning she looked in the mirror to discover that she was completely bald. “Finally,” she said to herself. “I won’t have to waste time doing my hair any more…”

That, my friends, is someone who understands the power of personal choice. Choose well.

Hugs,
Shellie