“Between stimulus and response, there is a space. In that space is our power to choose our response. In our response lies our growth and our freedom.” – Viktor Frankl

Our five senses are bombarded with stimuli. Some of the stimuli have become engineered, especially those directed toward our senses of sight and sound. It has become difficult to escape screens and speakers where much of the content is controlled. Billions of dollars are invested to ensure that we hear messages that massage our thoughts and bend the connections in our synapses to become more receptive to concepts we may not be consciously aware of.

When not driven by technology, the stimulus may be the words and actions of our relations, friends, colleagues, and acquaintances. The touch, the lack of touch, the words that are spoken or unspoken, what we see them do . . . or not do. Sometimes, the stimuli are not the issue, it is our perception of the stimuli.

The range of what our senses may perceive is vast. Horrible tragedies, beautiful vistas, immense pain, gentle caresses, smells and tastes so intense that they induce nausea and respiratory issues, the fragrance and flavors of a favorite meal, sounds so loud as to cause permanent hearing loss, wonderful symphonies. Our sensory extremes are trauma and love.

We cannot always choose our response to the stimuli we are receiving, but we can pause, even a nanosecond to be mindful of our response. Often though, our response is ours to choose, we can scream in joy or anguish, we can be silent. We can rush in or run away. We can smile, we can frown. It is ours to choose.

We can recognize the moment for what it is. Flight, fight, or freeze is a crisis response. Not everything is a crisis.

When we pause, perhaps we recognize the moment for what it is. And our response may become less urgent because the moment isn’t a crisis, it’s not even important, it is just . . . a moment. And sometimes a moment is an eternity. An eternity to be savored . . . or released and forgotten. Thoughts are not things, they are merely thoughts, and they only gain substance when we provide action. Be mindful of the angels and beasts that you create with your actions.

Mindfulness has become trivialized, but it is the most basic and effective tool in our arsenal of coping with life in the face of ever-increasing stimuli. In the dullest and most intense moments, to paraphrase Viktor Frankl, recognizing the space that exists between what we are experiencing and utilizing that space to choose our response, is our greatest potential for growth and freedom. In fact, when the stimuli are traumatic, our best outcome is to take action. Pressing “pause” can give us a moment to choose and commit to an action that is more appropriate than our initial reflex to “freeze”, to do nothing, may have dictated.

Published by Trekking Cyclist

from Plano, TX. Father, grandfather, cyclist, fan of the Texas Rangers and Texas Longhorns View all posts by Trekking Cyclist