The Quiet Choice
The Quiet Choice
I have been reflecting recently on how much of life is shaped by the choices we make.
Not just the obvious choices, such as where to live, what work to do, or whether to say yes or no to a particular opportunity. I'm talking about the quieter choices that often pass unnoticed as we move through our day.
The choice to listen to a thought, or simply allow it to drift by.
The choice to become caught up in an emotion, or to notice it moving through us.
The choice to react immediately, or to pause for just a moment before responding.
When we begin to look more closely, it becomes clear that life is presenting us with these small choices all the time.
Life on Autopilot
It's a little like walking through a familiar woodland. If you've travelled the same path many times, you stop noticing the individual trees, the birdsong, or the way the light filters through the leaves. Your feet simply know where to go.
Much of life can feel like that. We find ourselves following familiar thought patterns, familiar emotional responses and familiar habits without ever stopping to question whether they are still taking us where we wish to go.
This is one of the reasons I value Reiki practice so deeply.
People often come to Reiki looking for healing, relaxation or a sense of peace. These are all beautiful gifts of the practice. Yet over time, many students discover that Reiki offers something else entirely.
It creates space.
The Gift of Space
Imagine a snow globe that has just been shaken. The glitter swirls around making it difficult to see what is inside. Yet when we place it down and allow it to settle, everything gradually becomes clear again.
Our minds can be a little like that.
When life feels busy, when our attention is being pulled in multiple directions, or when we are caught in a cycle of worry, frustration or overwhelm, it can be difficult to hear ourselves.
Reiki doesn't force the snow to settle.
It simply encourages us to become still enough for the settling to happen naturally.
As we spend time in self-treatment, meditation or simply sitting quietly with our hands resting in Gassho, something begins to shift. We start to notice the thoughts moving through the mind rather than becoming completely absorbed by them.
Becoming the Observer
Perhaps the greatest gift of all is that we begin to realise there is a part of us that can simply observe.
For me, this is where real choice begins.
Not in the big life decisions that come along every so often, but in the small moments that shape our everyday experience.
The moment we decide not to believe every fearful thought that appears.
The moment we choose compassion towards ourselves instead of criticism.
The moment we stop trying to force an outcome and become curious about what might unfold if we simply take the next step in front of us.
Small Choices Shape Our Lives
A river doesn't create a valley overnight. It does so through its steady flow, day after day, year after year.
In the same way, our lives are shaped by the small choices we make repeatedly, often long before we see the results.
This is why I love the simplicity of the Reiki Precepts.
They don't ask us to have everything figured out.
They don't ask us to be perfect.
Instead, they gently bring us back to today.
To this moment.
To the choice that is available right now.
Hearing Ourselves More Clearly
Many of us have heard the phrase, "If something is for you, it won't pass you by."
Over the years, I have come to understand this differently. Not as a reason to sit back and wait for life to happen, but as an invitation to trust.
To trust that when we are present, when we are listening, and when we are willing to take the next aligned step, life has a way of opening the doors that need to open.
Reiki doesn't tell us which choice to make.
What it does do is help us clear enough of the noise that we can hear ourselves again.
And often, when that happens, the next step becomes surprisingly clear.
