...for the Stumped

Earlier today I opened a text message that read I was too defensive.

My initial response was "NO I'M NOT. That's ridiculous." But, wouldn't that just prove the original point being made?

I can't deny the fact that I take life too seriously at times, but there are instances where being defensive is probably the best thing to do. FOR EXAMPLE.

I was enjoying a nice appetizer at BJ's fine restaurant with my best friend and our two guys friends. As I took a bite out of a delicious(yet regretfully filling) chicken tender, my compassionate friend Justin proceeded to comment on my weight, jokingly of course. The waiter came and asked us if we wanted anything else. I, fuming at this point, told her we could use a muzzle for the boy sitting across from me.

That. Is a good reason to be defensive.

Yet other situations such as a foul ball in a baseball game or a yo mama joke are purely ridiculous reasons to fight back.

Here is the burning question though...

How do you defend yourself when someone calls you defensive?

I was daydreaming while washing my hair in the shower earlier tonight(like I do on most occasions) and was contemplating my response to this statement.

I obviously can't rebuttal in the most obvious of ways, or else their point is proven. Yet, if I sit back and fail to respond, then I have let them perceive me in a way that is far away from my actual personality.

So you can see where I am trapped.

In any situation, you are forced to pick option A or option B. Few times do you have option A pt.1...unfortunately life doesn't always work in the in-between areas.

This goes for college applications and get-to-know you conversations as well. You write "my parents are divorced" or "my grades suck" but they don't see the in-between answers that make up the story line. No one sees the "i am a stronger person because of this brokenness" or "i am involved in 17 extra-curriculars".

Just in the way you can't give in-between answers in all aspects of life, you can't possibly give an in-between answer in defending your defensiveness.

What will you choose to do?

Be labeled as option A or option B, or work to change society's belief that in-between answers cannot always be used.