Good Morning,
I believe there is in all of us a “little voice” inside of our heads that when we take a moment to listen, can guide us, usually in the right direction. I have found that when I have ignored that “little voice”, I tend to find myself in otherwise uncharted territory and even harms way, be it physical or mental.
I think that “little voice” has a lot of help and support, not to mention a big job of keeping us alive. Some refer to it as “conscience1” while others see it as characters on our shoulders, one an angel and the other a devil. One telling us what we are about to do is right and the other saying it is wrong. It is after all; really in the perspective and circumstances at the time that our choices are made. I think we tend to alter our value system based on the desired outcome and at the very least necessity.
Justification can be the catalyst causing us to do things we maybe wouldn’t otherwise. “Well he did it, then it’s ok for me”, “one little hit of that joint won’t hurt”, “everybody is doing it”, “nobody has to know” and the best one, “I had no choice”.
My mom used to say to me, “If everyone else jumped off a cliff, would you do it too? Well except for my nephew Jeff, (the base jumper2), it would depend on the circumstances. I suppose mom’s message was that if you know in your heart others are making a bad decision; you should not follow their lead.
But, how do we know it is a bad decision? That is incessantly more complicated. I believe that ability is made up of all the experiences we have had in our life, up to that point and then all meticulously brought together in some kind of a mental bouillabaisse of outcomes and repercussions, thus allowing us to make choices with a pretty good idea how it will all turn out. This also explains why younger people make what we “older and more experienced folk” would consider stupid choices. Their experiences amount to more of a mental consommé with little substance to support their choices. When I think back on some of the choices I made as a youth, it becomes very clear as to the reasons, or lack of them and the outcome. I’m pretty sure if it weren’t for a “guardian angel”, I wouldn’t be writing this letter today.
So that little voice… well it may be a good idea to listen closely when it says, “do it” or “not a good idea”. Some of the most wonderful things as humans are that we can reason, we have freewill and we have that “little voice”. These I believe are unique and I am not completely sure we share that with other living things in this world3.
That “little voice” can be your friend. So, choose wisely when listening to it, after all, you are “at choice4” in what you do. You are the “Master of your fate and the captain of your soul5”.
Love, Dad
1) I find it odd that “conscience” is made up of “Con” and “Science”. Does that mean Not Science?
2)Here is a video of Jeff jumping.
3)Charles Darwin thought that any animal endowed with well-marked social instincts would inevitably acquire a moral sense or conscience, as its intellectual powers approximated man’s.
4)”At Choice” is a term I learned at Rapport Leadership Institute in Las Vegas. I’m proud to say that I’m a Master Graduate. (Not an Affiliate link, I do it because they made a difference.)
5) אתה האדון של גורלך והקפטן של נשמתך “Ata Ha’adon shel goralkha ve’ha’ kepten shel nishmatkha”
Image: Devil & Angel: Behavioral Advisor