I read an interesting analogy for managing emotions. Be a thermostat, not a thermometer.

Jason Kennedy, a teacher, writes: “A thermostat sets the temperature that a room will rise to meet, while a thermometer reacts to what it reads from the room and rises or falls in reaction.”

Yes, both monitor the temperature and give out a reading. But one is active and one is passive.

A thermometer rises and falls to the temperature given. It gets carried up by extreme heat and gets dragged down by an icy cold. It doesn’t change the temperature but merely reacts to — a passive participant.

But a thermostat is different. It knows what an ideal temperature is. And as new forces happen, it adapts accordingly. It regulates the room — an active participant.

It made me reflect on how emotions can be choices. Like a thermometer, we can be swayed by anger (heat) or fear (ice) and just respond to whatever temperature is given to us.

Or we can choose to be a thermostat. We can calmly center ourselves and set the temperature — and bring the whole room to comfort.