Choosing Our Reactions Wisely in Unpredictable Times

Some days the wind blows, it’s cold, rainy and cloudy.

 
Some days it’s calm, sunny and warm.

And sometimes those are all in the same day.

 
We don’t have control of the weather, nor do we have control of all things around us all the time.

 
And this can feel unsettling.

What we do have control over is how we respond to what’s happening around us.

 
Most of the time, when people or animals do something, it’s based on something that is bothering them.

 
Something they are afraid of, don’t understand, makes them nervous or hurt.

 
It’s not about us at all.

But how often do we react to that with the assumption that they are doing it with a motivation to “get me, hurt me, bother me”, etc.?
For me, it’s most clearly shown when working with horses.

 
Usually, when horses act out in a way that’s not what we are working toward, it’s because they don’t understand, are scared or are hurting. The horse is not intentionally trying to “get you”.

There are a few odd cases where this may be true, but it’s rare!

Unfortunately, we react out of a heightened emotional/ adrenaline state resulting from fear/ misunderstanding/ surprise/ on our part, and it turns to anger or frustration.

 
Then it spirals into a negative cycle and the horse picks up on your energy and things get worse.

 
If we take a deep breath, pause briefly (sometimes very briefly), and tell ourselves, rationally, that it was caused by this or that misunderstanding, hole in their training, or some other valid issue, we can proceed to fix the issue while avoiding causing more problems along the way.

 
The same is true working cattle, dealing with kids, spouses, friends, co-workers, you name it.

 
Easy?

Not at all.

Totally worth the discipline over our emotions and minds to learn how to take the
P-A- U- S- E?

Absolutely!!

We have the choice in how we respond to the weather or any other unpredictable situation.

 
Animals teach us so much, if we choose to listen and learn.