Creatures of Habit

Creatures of Habit

Habits (or wonts) are routines of behavior that are repeated regularly and tend to occur subconsciously.Habits are sometimes compulsory.^[3][5] The process by which new behaviours become automatic is habit formation.  Ref; wikipedia 

I am a true creature of Habit!!.  I have to workout first thing in the morning or I do not have the motivation to exercise.  I will most mornings stop by my local Starbucks and grab my Decaffeinated Americano, when travelling dependant on time of arrival I will most likely go out and acquaint myself with my surroundings. I always make a list before travelling. And a new habit which I think is great I always add a wide tooth grin smiley face at the end of my BBM and What's app messages.

Now there are probably a host more of these so called habits nothing more comes to mind and I do not want to bore you!.  BUT here's the thing,  I have learnt and realized that habits, rituals, repetitive tasks can be motivating, helpful with organization BUT also crippling and an out right pain in the butt for yourself and others.

Habit's have done me good especially on vacation for example I recently had a vacation in Maui, Hawaii and I fell straight into some really fabulous habits.  Like; Honolulu Coffee every morning, walks along the beach morning and afternoon, workout's every other day with my significant other and relaxation on sun lounger's in the same spot under the same umbrella everyday...I came home feeling like jelly. 

Relaxed, Refreshed and Revitalised!! 

These I think were good habit's and happy to be left behind till next time.

The second habit form which came to mind only after I watched the South African made film "Material" at the Vancouver South Africa Film Festival.  Are habit's that affect our psyche and in turn our everyday living in a negative way.  What this film made me realize was that habit's can also be responsible for our action's, reaction's, thought's and daily purpose; good and bad. Habit's that affect us on a psychological level play havoc with our lives creating either joy or discomfort.

Don't stop here!

"Material" was a story about family, relationship's, honesty, respect, loyalty, moral's, values and habit's!  One key element for me was that with this families daily task's (habit's) I felt a sense of sadness and suffocation.  One of the family members in this story side stepped left and right trying to dodge the everyday humdrum of his existence and was continuously yanked back to the families everyday existence by his father's rigid morale (habit).  

What popped out at me during the movie is with some habit's we can become so rigid in our action's, thought's and daily pattern's that we may become self-destructive, never opening our eyes to what appear's before us or happen's around us. Never enjoying the moment in front of us and the joy that surrounds us.  Never realizing how this bad habit is affecting the personal relationship with ourselves and those closest to us.  If we just let go of those rigid habits our lives could quite possibly flourish and be extraordinary!

Perhaps take a minute to think about a habit you may have formed or a daily ritual or task that no matter what, it is engrained in your everyday living.  How does this ritual/habit affect your thought pattern's, mood, relationship's and life.  Is it positive or negative?? 

Being true to your moral's, values and belief system's is fabulous.  It gives us the parameter's to work our life between, they are the very core to which our character is built, it signifies how we treat people, maintain relationship's and interact in our daily lives etc.  They can also form the foundation for habits being formed. 
BUT!!!! and a big but remember habits can also keep us constrained and STUCK!!!!

So perhaps now is the time to detox our lives, unleash, break free from some of those old (or new) habits and allow yourself to walk free.......you may be surprised what sit's before you.

Till next time, remember life can be a "tidy business"

Paula C