The Straw

Have you ever heard of the expression "the straw that broke the camel's back?" I've been mulling that expression over in my mind all afternoon. The idea that a camel or any other type of animal would stand still and let someone continually add to the pile of straw without complaint or reaction is almost comical. Surely the camel would move? Surely the camel would step aside. But, no, the camel stands there until he can no longer bear the load and collapses with a broken back.

What is your breaking point? There are certain situations in life that we tolerate without much, if any, reaction. We accept the situation as normal or acceptable and continue on letting the burden grow. What is it going to take to break you? What is it going to take for me to break? Each of us has a breaking point, it just takes different things to move us to that point. And what happens when you reach your breaking point? Do you collapse under the weight of a thousand burdens? Or do you vocalize your frustrations by screaming and yelling? Perhaps you just collapse into yourself like a dying star, creating a black hole effecting everything around you?

I have been thinking a lot lately about the difference in being proactive and reactive. Most of us, most of the time, are reactive. We wait until we have reached our breaking point, and as Pop-eye would say, "I've had all I can stand, and I can't stands no more." We explode and all that is left is the ruin of relationships.

But what if we choose to be proactive? We confront these situations head on. How different would our circumstances be, if instead of being controlled by them, we confront them?

Think about that situation that has been bothering you for some time. We have a choice. Are we going to let it continue piling on us until we collapse under its weight? Or are we going to do something about it?

How about instead of reaching the breaking point and reacting by doing something we will regret, we deal with the situation head on? How might that turn out? It's got to be better than waiting until we cross the point of no return. Take a moment to reflect on those times the straw broke your back. Could have you prevented those? Learn from past mistakes and decide to be proactive.