Reed A Prescott III

Sunday, May 23, 2010

"I Inherited a Rut"

When we refer our life to being in a rut it brings up many metaphors. "A rut is just a grave open at both ends", "Definition of insanity is to do the same thing over and over again but expect different results". etc...

What about those patterns we inherit. The ones we have because we were brought up in a certain environment. The practices we learned from an elder with no understanding of the purpose for the behavior. It can be hard to see because we are just conditionally reacting to a situation but if programed improperly we can be making the situation worse. Good habits are ones to keep.

The only way to understand why we acted a certain way is to ask questions of our self or others while trying to seek knowledge and understanding. Here is a story told by Naturalist Writer and Friend Ronald Rood about such a situation from his youth.

Ron was a little boy and he was watching his mom prepare a ham for the oven. In doing so his mom would always take a knife and cut a 1/2 inch off the end of the ham before putting it in the pan. Ron, being inquisitive asked "Mom, why do you cut that little bit off the ham before putting it in that pan?"

" I really don't know? I think it has something to do with making it flavorful and juicy.... your Grandmother always did so I do it as well"

So Ron took the question to his Grandmother..

"Gramma why did you always cut a 1/2 inch off the end of a ham before you cooked it"

"Well" Gramma said "if I didn't it wouldn't fit in the pan "

Be bold today and ask your self why did I do what I did as a reaction to a situation. The answer might surprise you.

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