Ripples

Just as tossing a rock into a lake will case ripples to flow outwards, our personal choice will also cause ripples to flow outward and touch others, whether we intend them to or not.  Each and every choice we make causes a ripple affect.  Whichever choice we choose odds are we're going to be affecting someone else and even the choices they might to make.

How often do we hear or even say, "you have a choice"?  Of course we have a choice, but so often we find ourselves considering how will this choice affect those we love?  

No matter what we are choosing we are not only affecting our own lives but those lives around us, whether it be family, friends, or merely acquaintances.   In turn, what we choose can in fact, alter the choice that another might make.  A simple way this works is if you are at a restaurant and you choose a steak and baked potato, the table next to yours then orders and they also want the steak and baked potato but you ordered the last baked potato they then must choose something else.  You thus effectively altered their dinner, you did nothing wrong but in fact they are going to have to choose something else because your choice affected them.

We make decisions all day, every day and often we never see the results of what our choices have on others.  It's important to remember that we alone are responsible for our choices, will they affect another, yes, but we have a right to live a life of our own making.  For instance moving away, maybe to another state, will most definitely affect our family that is left behind, but they can not be the reason we do not follow our path and choose the place we are going. 

Being mindful of the ripples we are causing is important, because it means we will be careful in how we approach the subject of telling our loved ones of the choices we are making.  However, we still have the right to follow our own path.