"Is That Your final Answer?"

I used to love watching "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire." Who doesn't love Regis Philbin? And who doesn't love getting large sums of money? Winning combo.

I think that the entire game show was worth watching not because people cared who wanted to be a millionaire but because they actually wanted to know: "is that your final answer?" The lights dimmed. A thin layer of perspiration appeared on the participants forehead. And I always pictured somebody sitting in the audience with their bongos, awaiting their cue to start pounding away for dramatic effect. In some cases, you could clearly see the confidence in the person's eyes. Other times, there was hesitation, wavering. More sweat. Why don't they just use their lifeline?!?! And then you suddenly realize you're forgetting to breathe, too.

But what if Regis hadn't bothered to throw out the "is that your final answer?" bit? Probably wouldn't have been nearly as enticing to watch.

"The answer is C, ______."

"Okie doke. Next question."

Lame.


Something about the finality of things really shakes people up. Because if you believe that something can or can't be undone, this can result in acute paralysis. (Particularly for someone like myself who finds it hard to decide which coffee creamer she wants in her coffee on any given day). Decision making is not my strong point, it's true. I've wrestled with everything from choosing a major in college (understandable) to which shade of gray I wanted to paint a room (and for the record- there isn't just one kind of gray. There are purple grays, green grays, blue grays...and it DOES SO matter). *ahem* Really and truly, one of the worst questions you can ask me is, "are you SURE???"

Marketers know this and have zeroed in on it. We live in a culture that inundates us with choice. I remember it took me hours to register at Babies R Us when I was pregnant with Ella. I spent two hours alone in the bottle/nipple/breast pump aisle. Who knew that there were so many types of nipples?? Not this girl. If you don't have kids or care to look at bottle-feeding accessories, then make a mental note of how many different kinds of toilet paper there are the next time you're out grocery shopping: angel soft, quilted, with aloe, extra thick, scented, select-a-size, tube-free...the list goes on. All of this fuss over something you're ultimately going to wipe your ass with. Seriously.

If it takes me 15 agonizing minutes to decide whether I want Charmin, Quilted Northern, or the toilet paper with the cute teddy bear on it, you can only imagine the weight of topics like, "do we want a third?" or, "do I want to go back to school?"

My husband is a great decision-maker: "Let's have Chinese for dinner."" I'm going to buy that new set of speakers." "I'm going to be a vegetarian for a while." Even, "I feel like our family is complete." He says it and there's usually no looking back.

Me? Sometimes, I feel like I wait for the confirmation to come that I'm making the right decision. I look for the writing on the wall, wait for the impact of the 2 x 4 upside my head. But I'm coming to realize that those moments are usually few and far between, and those that experience them are probably more of the exception rather than the rule. I have to come to terms with the fact that sometimes- maybe lots of times- I just won't be 100% sure. I may have a hunch. If I'm really lucky, I may even be 90% sure, but that's all I'm getting.

But I guess if we were always 100% sure of everything, there'd be no need for faith...