TIHL #8 How To Make Decisions

This week has been declared "Minnesota Music Therapy Week" by our governor. We, the Music Therapy Student Association, have been doing our best to publicize this historic event. I'm not quite sure who decided that buying "Thank You" plants for our music therapy professors was included in the MTSA Vice-Presidential duties, but it appears that this is so. Clearly they were not aware that I am the Vice-President.

I am a terrible decision maker. It's not that I make bad decisions, it's just that I generally take until the 12th of Never to make them. I always feel the need to consider every option over and over again. You can imagine that being sent off with only the MTSA budget and the instructions to "buy a plant" caused me a mild version of distress. (I also was instructed to buy two thank-you cards, but my adventures in Hallmark are a whole different story.)

First, there was some debate as to whether said plants were going to be grocery store quality or flower shop quality. I eventually settled on going to the Bachman's area inside of Byerly's. (I may be a terrible decision maker, but I am a great compromiser.) After perusing the selection of violets, azaleas, daisies, calla lilies, and a host of other polysyllabic flowers whose names I couldn't even pronounce, let alone remember, I finally had it narrowed down to two. I debated and debated. I compared prices. I walked back and forth between the two plants until I was bleary-eyed. I used my "phone-a-friend" life line to ask for advice. She told me to go with my instincts.

Nearly a full 40 minutes later, I strode toward the cashier with the confidence of someone who had just selected the ideal thank-you plant. As I set my soon-to-be purchases on the counter, the cashier looked down with a somewhat dubious expression and said "My, those plants certainly are interesting." "They're new," I volunteered. "Do you think they're too weird?" "Well, they're very interesting. I hope whoever you give them to will enjoy them." It's lucky that I have such a good sense of humor, or I probably would have cried, or maybe taken out the cashier. Instead, I laughed half of the way home. I can hardly wait to give my professors their Red Mangroves.