Saturday, October 09, 2004

Evolved Reflections

It is strange how, sometimes, the nature of your childhood, evolves into the nature of your present.

You don’t really see the evolution. But then you look back at what you are today and compare it with what you were 10-15 years ago and draw the parallels. They are striking. You behaviors are mirrored. It might not be an exact reflection, but it is an evolved reflection. Like looking into a pond which has ripples. This reflection comes out in the way you handle situations, your attitude towards things, your demeanor and countless other ways. I realized it last night as I was heading home. I was thinking back on my week and how I thought about some stuff and handled certain situations and about how similar it was to what I was like when I was a child. Now, this is not be confused with “not growing up”. This is about growing up, but at the same time retaining what is essentially “you”.

Think of your demeanor towards anything in the present, and then look back and think whether there is a parallel mannerism you exhibited when you were young(er) …

Examples invited.


10 comments:

Anonymous said...

One thing that many people notice some time or other ( if they are observant) is the fears of your childhood remain with you not matter what your age age an apparent maturity


http://rebelbagwani.blogspot.com/

Diane said...

It's because we have core values that do not change, they stay with us throughout our lives.

When I was younger - around 10 - 11 years old, my mother asked me to help around the house. I made lists of chores she asked me to do, then marked them off as I completed each. I still do that even today, for my own chores. That was just the first example I thought of - I know there are more.

Persephone said...

It's the nature of our soul that never changes. We evolve in manners and focus but our feelings are immutable.

Alan Gurling said...

While reading the post halfway through, I can totally disagree with you. Yet somehow, thinking back to the days when I could've enjoyed life more than I do now, I do realize the parallel ways that I used to do things.

Great post. :)

Puglet said...

My actions do not parallel my childhood, but inside..my reactions do. I think inherent parts of personality always stay the same..inside. You can change your outside actions, choose to behave differently, but rarely I think can the inner influences change

. : A : . said...

Rebelbagwani - Yes, I guess fears of your childhood remaining is a good point. Initially, I was not thinking of it, but now can connect that too.

Diva Drip - That is a classic example of how we get conditioned towards things. I have a friend who was made to brush his teeth before meals and now everytime he brushes his teeth he feels hungry!

Pandora - Agree with you - our feelings are immutable.

G - Good to know that you could draw the parallel. It is not so obvious and at times we have to struggle to connect the two.

Puglet - Reactions are a good way of looking at it. I was also thinking along the same line. I guess you have articulated it better. But our reactions do have an implication on our actions a lot of the time. At least for me they seem to.

Thanks to all for your comments on this (and other posts). Very interesting discussions.

:-)

Sara said...

I still have this fear of being in trouble for doing things that I know are not wrong. Like puglet said, I don't react in the same way that I did as a child (e.g., embarassment, fear), but it never fails that I have to constantly talk myself through things and remind myself why there is no reason to be fearful. Something to do with authority roles and using punishment in order to shape my behavior while growing up I think.

. : A : . said...

Sara - I can totally identify with that. Somehow, it just carries through unwanted and unnecessary.

Cori said...

Yes... when I look back I can still identify with the essence of my self. The part that never changes. Beautiful thinking. I feel like I was just sitting at the beach, looking at the ocean. You know what I mean? Well... I linked you.... I enjoy reading about your travels.. I imagine you writing a travel guide for poets!

. : A : . said...

Cori - I know what you mean. Thanks for linking up. Look forward to having you here again. A travel guide for poets ... hhmmm ... very interesting. I am going to seriously think about doing that!

:-)