E. Lexi Abbott

It is interesting what kind of curve balls life throws at you. They are all very carefully set up and aimed but you don’t notice until you get hit squarely in the face by a ball going at 80 miles per hour.

But instead of getting hit in the face with a ball, you lose your cool, get overwhelmed, go through a breakup, lose a job or a house, or even accidentally injure yourself.

When a curveball comes at us, we have to remember any previous ones like it and try to act or think differently about the ball’s approach.

Will we duck down and try to avoid getting hit? Will we try to swing our bat in time to glance the situation away from us? Will we stand there and simply let it happen all over again?

Oftentimes, aggressive reactivity feels the best in the moment but causes more harm than good. We get hit harder and possibly even knock into the catcher behind us, hurting more people in the process.

But if we truly learned from our past situations, and made appropriate change, we might yet be able to catch ourselves and swing that bat just perfectly to hit a Home Run.

No matter the outcome – it is just a game. The balls will keep coming as long as we need them to in order to learn the skills required to run to first base. We have no control over our past…but we do have control over our present.

So, what will you do the next time life throws a curveball at you? Will you stand frozen or will you at least attempt the swing the bat?