The F12 Button Again
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I’m a sanguine surrounded by melancholies. Proof that God has a sense of humor.
Life is challenging for me at times. I live on a 21 acre, off grid farm … that’s right, no tv or Facebook … with some of my adult children. All but one of them has melancholy in every area of their temperament. My ex was melancholy straight across the board, and most of my close friends are melancholies. Although I was never able to give my parents an APS test, I’m fairly certain that my dad was mostly melancholy and my mom mostly supine.
So all of that got me thinking … many of us function outside of our temperament. We learn behaviors in childhood in order to survive our family situation. Those behaviors become our F12 button … see Tim’s previous post … even though they’re often not typical of the temperament God designed in us.
For me, my F12 button means that I often behave as a supine, even though I’m sanguine in inclusion and affection. Put me in a group of people I don’t know, and I sit and wait for people to come to me. I rarely call my friends just to chat because I’m afraid of bothering them. After all, these melancholies have their day planned! I don’t touch or hug my kids very often, because they don’t need it. Those behaviors are totally opposite from the way God created me, but for all of my life, I’ve needed to fit in with a bunch of melancholies.
Think about your F12 button … are those behaviors consistent with how God designed you, or are they things you’ve learned? Are they beneficial or destructive? Do you need to take control and tweak some of them instead of just letting them happen?
I’ve learned to find healthy ways to get my needs met, even when surrounded by people whose temperament is so different from mine. Most of the time, I even enjoy the joke. 😉
Blessings … Cindy
Cindy grew up in rural NY and Ohio. She spent almost 30 years as an RN in a major children’s hospital before God called her to change direction and pursue a degree in Christian counseling. She is a Certified Temperament Counselor and Certified Pastoral Counselor.
Cindy home-schooled her five children, all adults now, and currently lives on a farm in West Tennessee.
