When you see a child fall and skin their knee, do you see them as the victim of an uncontrollable circumstance and feel bad for them, or do you see them as the creator of an experience that fosters a desire for more balance and dexterity; allowing them to then move more freely and confidently through life?
Have you ever noticed that when a young child falls, it is often more of a surprise than anything.?
They then look to mommy or daddy, for cues on how to respond to what just happened.
If the parent acts as if something bad has happened, the child will respond the same, and start crying. Yet if the parent acts like it is no big deal, or even celebrates it in a way that encourages them to try again, the child has an entirely different response.
There is a space that exists between your observation of what is happening and how you interpret it; what you make it mean. That meaning then dictates your response.
Your response may be what you say or do, or simply how you feel.
But remember, that it isn’t what you are observing, it isn’t what is happening that determines your response, it’s what you make it mean.
And you get to choose what it means.