developmental chocolate
Monday, May 18th, 2009the first 3-5 years of our lives are the most important for a child’s development. this is the time when our brains and bodies go through the most dramatic changes (the teenage years being the other developmental hotbed of activity). these early years are when patterns are formed in our brains that hardwire (a word i find i use quite a bit recently) us to act in certain ways and expect the world to respond in certain manners.
i believe this is one reason why we are so territorial. i believe this is why we have comfort zones.
many years ago now, i left my comfort zone. there were many reasons, and there were many reasons why i never returned, at least never for good. and now i have a new comfort zone. but that hard wiring in my head, that was forged before i was three, living in another land, still expects things to happen and people to respond in a certain way. particularly the people. they just respond to me differently. and in turn i’m never sure how to interpret.
but when i left, i gave that up. things don’t happen here in my chosenland in that way. the chocolate tastes different here, and it’s good chocolate, but it’s not how i expect it to be.
it’s not the only chocolate. there’s no ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ way for it to taste, as so many people would have me believe.
and i’m starting to relearn that, and have the occasional bar of ‘the other kind’. and that’s ok.
(incidentally, that’s a metaphor.)