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Unsticking yourself from Old Belief Systems

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It's the raining season over here in Malaysia and going out for anything can be a hassle, you know what I am talking about Florida, Washington and London. Either you are going to end up completely drenched or your sneakers are going to smell a little funky tomorrow.

Today, my son said something to me when I lamented about the rain. 'Mom, we've got enough umbrellas, why is it that we never use them and end up running about frantically?'

Good question, my son. I don't know the answer myself. Why? LOL

So, we grabbed the few umbrellas on the way out for lunch and we splashed around in the rain, flicking rain water at each other as we catch them falling from the edges of the umbrellas. Like kids do, not worrying about the sneakers tomorrow or getting sick tomorrow.

It's funny when kids ask you questions like these and you realize that you stuck to something in your brain without knowing why you're doing it. The answers to why I never used the umbrellas were because:-

  1. It's a hassle (as opposed to it being a hassle going out without the umbrellas too). Sometimes, your brain is stuck and this is one of mine, I guess.
  2. It means I CAN go out any time I want without getting wet, which means I CAN get out any time I want even when it rains and that would be....yes, you guessed it, a hassle too.
  3. We might break the umbrellas and we don't want that
  4. Where would we dry the umbrellas when we get in? We stay in an apartment. 
At the back of my mind, I have all the solutions, easy ones, to all the road blocks I gave myself. It's NOT a hassle and you can dry the umbrella at the car park. Loads of space. No one's going to steal an umbrella and even if they do, how much does it cost, anyway? There are loads of free merchandise in the form of umbrellas, ready for you to help them promote their logos and products for free (almost - the umbrellas cost something).

These are the excuses that I have given myself a long time ago when my kids were little. It's hard (a hassle), believe you me, to get around in the rain with two toddlers under one umbrella. They are nearly men now and I found myself stuck with those excuses. 

Sometimes, it takes a simple prodding like that, a question for you to honestly answer yourself, to realize that we have the tendency to 'stick ourselves' onto old belief systems. And to answer them honestly would ultimately change the way we think...and changing is unsafe, beyond our comfort zone, entering the unknown, or simply scary. 

Funny, isn't it?

Image Credit : The Rain is Gone
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