Working Up

by Dwayne Phillips

We do the things we do because we choose to do them from among all the other choices we have. These choices can be light hearted and they can be rather dark and scary.

I learned a few things about myself in the past couple of weeks. For one, I like writing more than I like drinking coffee. How do I know that? Simple, I have found myself allowing my coffee to go cold while writing. I would not stop writing long enough to take even one sip of the still-warm coffee. I reached for the coffee after I had finished writing. By then, the coffee was cold.

For another thing, I like doing almost anything with my grandson more than watching football – even more that watching the Super Bowl. How do I know that? Simple, when the Super Bowl was on live a few weeks ago, I spent the entire first half watching old Disney cartoons on old VHS tapes on an old TV with my grandson. He went home at half time (bed time for him). I went to bed as well.

So this is all pretty simple stuff. What do you like doing? You are doing it right now. If you are reading blogs, you like reading blogs more than you like everything else that you could be doing. You are reading blogs because you have chosen to do so.

This you-do-what-you-like-to-do concept can lead us into some dark places.

If you turn red and scream at people, that is because you would rather turn red and scream at people than  do anything else you could choose to do.

If you bully people, that is because you would rather bully people than do anything else you could choose to do.

If you drink until you pass out, that is because you would rather drink until you pass out than do anything else you could choose to do.

Hmmm, I told you this could lead us into some dark places. Maybe we should concentrate on the light stuff like watching Disney cartoons. Then again, maybe we should spend more time considering the dark places we go and how must like going to those dark places. Otherwise, we would go to the other places we can choose to go.