Un-push the Buttons
Have you ever been so upset at someone to the point of losing control? Have you ever get so mad at someone that you turned into a completely different person you never knew existed? Has someone ever pushed your buttons?
For me, the answers were yes, yes, and yes. I had a heated argument this past week with someone I am very close with. I won’t go into detail of what the argument was, who was right, and what was said. All I can tell is that I completely lost it in the heat of the moment. I turned into a completely different person and it wasn’t a nice one. Things were said that should not have been said. The whole event caused quite a stir in my relationship with that person. It also affected my interaction with those unfortunate enough to witness it. The whole thing was a mess, to say the least.
It was only after a few days had passed that I was able to think back on it without getting angry. Time always helps. Despite what the other person did and said that were unjustly and wrong, I had no excuse in losing it. If only I could take back what was said. If only there was a time machine. If only I was a better person. If only…
From reading the biography of Benjamin Franklin, I learned that he often wrote an angry letter to someone who had wronged him but never sent it. The process of venting it out on paper was more than enough to free him from anger. Someone once said that even though a person had pushed our buttons, they were still “our” buttons. We do have control over them. We can choose how to respond.
As long as there are people, there will always be someone who will rub us the wrong way. There will always be someone who will push our buttons, whether accidentally or intentionally. And as long as we cannot change other people (Oh how I tried…), the only thing we can do is to change ourselves. We can gain control back by choosing not to respond to the stimulus. We can “un-push” the buttons. I know, I know… it’s easier said than done. Oh how I’ve tried and fail again on this. But the only way to succeed is to try. So the next time someone pushes my buttons, I will try to remember to “un-push” it and just walk away.
Popularity: 34%
