Either momentarily or regularly, we experience circumstances that are beyond our control. Be it with family members, weather or other natural forces, inconveniences, unpleasant assignments, or unrewarding relationships, we all encounter situations we cannot change. However, we can choose our responses to these situations. How we choose to handle life’s challenges largely determines how we feel about ourselves.
As Oseola McCarty, a washerwoman who donated $150,000 to the University of Southern Mississippi, once said, “If you want to be proud of yourself, you’ve got to do things you can be proud of.” Choosing to respond positively in any situation improves the feelings we have about ourselves.
A friend describes the feeling this way: “I like to talk about self-pride. I will tell a child that you can’t eat self-pride or spend it. You can’t use it up. No one can take it away from you. You can feel it any time you want, and you can nourish it. It even grows. It never hurts anyone and it makes you feel good.”
Of course, I hope no one reading this is ever tested with a horrendous situation. For the most part, our challenges will be in choosing how best to respond to everyday normal situations. The decisions made in living day by day actually create the very fabric of life. When viewed from this perspective, everyday choices deserve our awareness.
