Ping ping ping ricochet rabbit…

I’m still getting trapped by this one and I suspect I will until my dying day. Our closest loved ones can push our buttons, can’t they? Well the reaction that is generated in response is called “reactivity”. This comes from family therapy, not from Buddhism. This topic hints at the reading I’ve been doing on the work of David Schnarch which he summarizes with his own voice. David Schnarch focuses on the emotional reactivity that poisons our romantically coupled relationships. He emphasizes self-soothing to minimize reactivity and bring harmony back into a relationship. I also wanted to point out here that the reactivity can be transferred to other parties in one’s day, at work, at the coffee shop, at the gym, at the mall, at the grocery store, at the auto repair shop. All those places where reactivity thrives. We wake up, have an argument with our spouse, then several hours later we are arguing with the gasoline attendant. These are related events. They must be treated as such.