I posted a quote on FaceBook the other day...it goes something like, “You can lead people to logic, but you can’t make them think”.  This quote spoke directly to me because I have been thinking a lot lately about how I (and people around me) often make decision about our health and happiness that defy logic.  For example, a friend of mine happened to have a package of strawberry twizzlers.  She offered me one and I took it.  As I ate it, we joked about how disgusting they really are.  Some strange concoction of sugar, artificial color and a waxy substance, flavored with some artificial flavoring that tastes nothing like strawberry.  I ate it, laughing about the fact that I don’t even consider this a food product…and then I ate another one!  WHAT?!  Why would I choose to eat something I barely even enjoyed and that I know has no redeeming qualities?  Why would I choose to make such an illogical eating choice?

Trust me, this is not the only illogical choice I make…I make them all the time, we all do!  I recently heard someone say they don’t take baths because they don’t like the idea of sitting in their own filth.  But, they don’t mind hot tubs because at least there are chemicals in the water.  Wait, what?  You don’t want to sit in water that contains the stuff that was already on your body…but you don’t mind soaking in a chemical bath?  Interesting way to look at it.

I don’t eat meat, except for seafood.  I can tell you my story about why this is, but is it logical?  No.  You might eat cows but not sheep, or maybe you eat deer but not rabbit, is that logical? You know your body needs exercise to be healthy, but you may choose TV instead…You may choose bottled water when your tap is right there…You may choose to lay out in the sun despite knowing it could lead to skin cancer (because we want to look good, right?)…You may choose to hold a grudge against somebody rather than mend a friendship…You may choose to go splurge on new outfits rather than pay your bills…You may choose to participate in negative gossip rather than be impeccable with your words… I could go on and on with examples of illogical choices we ALL make, EVERY day.

Why am I bringing this up?  Because I think once we start to pay attention to our choices…when we notice ourselves doing things that don’t make any sense….when we notice we are making choices that are in opposition from what we really want…that is when we become conscious and we can choose better!  Will we be perfect?  Will we ever stop making illogical decisions about our health or our happiness?  No…because life is about moderation and sometime that twizzler brings back a great childhood memory, and sometimes the sunshine just feels good our face. 

The simple awareness of these illogical decisions lets us be accountable for our actions, and that is the only way to be truly happy and to create healthy changes in the way we live our lives.

Namaste,

Tracy