Not Everything in Life Deserves a Response
Yeah, I’m that guy that doesn’t like to be “one-upped.” I would prefer to always get the last word in. This was especially true if I felt like I had my back against the wall and I was forced to defend my stance. But as I grew up and then I grew wiser, I learned another one of those quiet realizations we all learn at various times in our lives. For me, this one realization said: “Not everything deserves your reaction.”
This world is constantly pushing us to make an immediate response. It almost feels unnatural if we don’t. With everything always happening in real-time due to technological advances, it’s too tempting not to. Looking at social media, for example, how many times has someone said something about someone else and before you can scroll to the next post, that person has already responded? The quick and the loud win the dispute. And the faster the response, the more the audience loves it.
It’s a crazy but convenient world we live in. Be that as it may, we have the impression that messages demand automatic replies. It’s always some sort of negative statement that makes us agitated easily. It just seems like it has become that everyone’s opinion is supposed to be met with a rebuttal. It gives us a certain persona when we become quick on the reply. In my opinion, it’s usually just for the attention (the likes). But attention and wisdom are not the same thing.
Becoming more aware of life and how we interrelate to others is something of immense value and importance. That said, sometimes the most mindful thing we can do is pause long enough to realize that a response isn’t really that necessary after all. I mean, what does it really gain us? Not every misunderstanding requires a correction and not every criticism requires an explanation. I’m learning that sometimes the biggest show of power and force and control is better displayed in one action – restraint. The ability to let go is a powerful force that cultivates present-moment awareness.
Learning to observe a situation rather than letting that primal instinct to react take over is something that shows us the difference between what actually matters and what simply is just another draw or demand of our energy (another of life’s distractive illusions). Many times, these things are urgent, they are just temporary noise in that loud building we all reside in.
As mindfulness begins to develop in the small quiet spaces of awareness, we start to realize that we are allowed to choose where our attention and our energy goes. We get to decide which conversations deserve our presence or peace of mind and when it’s time to simply leave something alone. In this context, a Rebirth is not about showing or adding something new to our lives It is about removing the pressure and the desire to engage with all the things that cross our paths. The clarity I desire shows up whenever I choose not to fill it with unnecessary actions, reactions, or responses. Consider the next time something pulls at your attention instigating a response, consider this possibility – pause….and Rebirth.
Stay mindful…
Rebirth
