by Pam Mistyhn

Created on: March 21, 2010

As children, our choices seem pretty limited.  Our parents usually make decisions for us in the form of orders.  I was certainly never given the option to NOT do my homework or to NOT brush my teeth a few times a day.  My mother didn’t look at me when I was seven or ten and say, “Honey, would you like to do your homework tonight or play Atari instead?”  As we grow up, though, we learn that the choices we make eventually carry their consequences. 

As a pre-teen, I’d been as annoying as any obnoxious kid could be.  I’d tested the limits of my parent’s patience time and again, with my whining, complaining, and continuous list of “I wants.”   Once in a while, though, I’d be surprised at my misjudgment of my parent’s reactions and find myself with a sore behind, sulking in my room because I made a bad choice and my parents agreed it was bad.  

It was at those times I’d make the choice to bring up something bad my older brother had done.  In my childhood, we called that being a tattle tale.  When I needed to divert the attention off of my bad decision, I’d be quick to throw blame, like Ralphie throwing Schwartz under the bus on A Christmas Story, with a “Chris made me do it.”  OK, so I was a tattle tale and a liar, but that’s another story for another time.  My point is, if my older brother could get away unscathed, there was hope for me yet.   But that trick never worked.  My mother would tell me to mind my own business, and then, I would have to deal with the consequences my big brother would dole out for my tattling ways. 

The older I became, the more expansive my choices.  What courses did I want to take in high school?  Where was I going to get a part time job?  What kind of car was I going to drive?  Was I going to do my homework?  Decisions and choices were all around me, and suddenly I felt overwhelmed with the pressures of adulthood.  Along with those adult like decisions came adult like consequences. 

My choice to drive like a bat out of hell resulted in paying a lot of tickets, accumulating a lot of points on my license, and almost losing my driver’s license because of my irresponsibility.  My choice to not go to school 69 days during my senior year resulted in almost not graduating with my class.  My choice to go to my senior prom

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