Have the Fates written our stories already? At creation, when we were woven in the womb, was our destiny also constructed? Do our choices matter?
I believe they do. I think it is the seat of our soul, the vital and integral component that transforms a brain into a mind. To think and to know is to have free will. It is a fundamental cornerstone of my faith and how I (think I) understand my Creator. He gave me free will. I get to choose. I get to pick.
Some will argue that Knowledge (like from that Evil Tree in Eden) was the fall of man and that it is better to submit to God in all things. I can agree with that but ultimately, God created CHOICE. He wired Adam and Eve to chose to obey or defy. Ever wonder what God had planned for them and that tree? I wonder what the next morning in Eden might have been like had Eve not picked that apple or if Adam had just said no. I imagine God had a roster of activities to run through with his new creations and then all Hell broke lose. Plans changed. Adam and Eve get punished and expelled and God has to alter things, right? Ever wonder what his plans might have been like otherwise?
We all get free will. We all get to adjust our paths. We get the do-overs. We get second chances, a thousand second chances.
I love being free to chose and there is so much to chose, everything is a CHOICE. I chose to be angry or happy. I chose to forgive or hold the grudge. I chose to eat – and what to eat – when I am hungry. I chose to go to bed and sleep and brush my teeth, study for a test, stop properly at a red light, wear my seat belt, say thank you, hold open a door, throw trash on the ground, flush the toilet, make my bed, write the letter, climb a mountain, love. I chose to love.
Love is a choice. Loving whole-heartedly is a choice. Loving myself is a choice. Loving my children is a choice – a very easy one – and often easier than loving myself. Loving another person is a choice but gets trickier and scarier. Why? Love is a choice. And yet, it is a choice we avoid, reject, deny, fear, disbelieve.
Of every choice laid before me, I know I avoid sleep. I don’t make great food choices. I am not always loving towards myself or my kids and especially strangers. I can be mean and meanness is a choice. I make bad choices all the time.
But they are all choices. Made choices. Completed choices. Why do we leave love – falling in love – unattended. It is a choice like any other. So pick. PICK and decide and step forward. And be in love.