Embracing Reactivity

I went to SF this past weekend and got to spend some time with my brother. We were talking about relationships and about how they're hard because boys are dumb (my opinion) and because girls are impossible to understand (his opinion). After talking to him, I discovered WHY he thinks girls are impossible. Here it is: Women read too much into everything guys say and do and then act upon their own conclusions in ways that often appear odd or illogical. Here is an example:

Guy is tired or sick.
Guy tells girls he's tired or sick.
Girl listens to this.
Girl notices the guy's behavior seems like he is less interested, less attracted, less SOMETHING.
Girl decides this means he is no longer interested in her.
Girl decides she is wasting her time and should give up.
Girl ignores guy in a move of desperate self-protection.
Guy thinks: WTF?

I am very, very guilty of this. And so, I've decided to stop thinking. I am going to try to be like a man. I don't mean that as an insult--I do not think that the male mind is void of thought. Rather I mean that like a guy, I will TRY to not think about things outside of what I am doing at the moment because those thoughts often times lead to dangerous conclusions and stupid premature, over-correcting behavior.

See, us women are good at multitasking, both in the traditional sense (doing lots at once) and a mental sense (doing something and thinking about something else). I find this suits me well in my career and in school, but not when it comes to relationships with other people.

So how do I plan on not thinking? I am going to do this by focusing on the moment. Thinking exactly about what is happening in the exact moment prevents my mind from multi-taksing, from drifting off to wayward thoughts like "I wonder if he'll call?" or "what is going to happen next?" These questions are stupid and I don't want to think about them anymore.

So for the first time in my life, I have decided to go against my A-type personality and proactive analytical nature to embrace a life of reaction. I can't wait!

Peace of mind? Where are you? I'm ready!