the surprises of life

sometimes life brings us surprises. sometimes these are pleasant. sometimes these are not. sometimes they cause things to change forever. sometimes they don't. sometimes they are even expected (can you suspect a surprise?), usually they are not (this is what makes it a surprise).

i had have a few pleasant surprises this week. i was expecting one, some of my friends got engaged. another one i wasn't. one of my friends told me that she had found out the sex of her twins due later in the year. and then a cousin of mine told me he can come to my wedding.

i've been told before that life is about action, not reaction. however, there are some circumstances, these surprises, that are all about your reaction. it's quite easy to get excited when the surprises are pleasant, but when they are not it's all about how you react.

do we react with grace? compassion? mercy? rational thought and word? do we react in a way that is helpful? to others, to ourselves?

the way you act in life can speak volumes, the way you react speaks even louder.