Getting out of the Box

I watched a mouse run up and down through the maze that was set up for it and completely related. I was in college and working toward my Pre-engineering degree and was doing a Psychology class. The topic of the class was ‘how we developed a particular behavior based on a particular stimulus’.  Even when the stimulus had been removed we still exhibited the same behavior. The mouse in this case was trained to run from one end of a maze to the other to find the pieces of cheese that had been carefully placed within in it. Even when the cheese was removed the mouse was still running from one end to the next. I felt the same way in my life. I was just running from one thing to the next and felt there was no real purpose behind it.

I loved college life and was working a part-time job in the evening as a bus person.  I was making some money for myself and my classes this semester was not to challenging but regardless of all of this I felt my life was taking no particular direction. I had one more semester and I would have been completed with my degree, yet I did not know what I would do next. Locally there was nowhere to complete my Bachelor’s degree and I did not have either the money or the GPA I would have liked to apply for a scholarship. I did not know what to do. I watched the mouse run back and forth and saw myself just running from pillar to post.

What was the point? I left class feeling depressed and when I arrived home, I felt even worst.  One week turned to two and my best friend saw the change in my demeanor and asked me what was wrong. I explained to him how I was feeling and that I felt even after getting my degree there was no way I would be able to get the job I wanted.  My heart’s desire at the time was to be a Computer and Electrical Engineer. My friend literally laughed in my face and just made me feel worst.  I looked at him and was completely crushed by the fact I had openly divulged to him how I was feeling and he just laughed at me. My best friend smiled at and me and told me I had nothing to worry about. He was in a different major but understood how I felt. He began to tell me a plan of how I could follow through with my degree, get a job and still follow my dream. By the time he had finished speaking I felt a whole lot better.

I was only thinking about the way we traditionally got our degrees, looked for a job and followed what everyone else did. My best friend was an angel sent. I had never thought of the plan he had explained to me. I was going to be leaving college with an associated degree. He pointed out to me that I could have joined the Defense Force at that time and since I had a degree I would have been coming in as an officer. I would only have to serve for a certain number of years and could have retired if I so desired. In the progress of my service I would have been able to further my training, obtain my degree while still utilizing my skills to benefit both the organization and myself. I was so depressed all I could see was what was before me and the traditional root everyone else followed, which was get a degree, get a job, save some money then try to complete your degree if you could not afford to right away.

A Moment of Clarity

The beauty of our lives is that there is no completely wrong or right path to follow if we allow God to lead. When we follow only what we are given traditionally and do not allow room to think or act outside of our regular routines we miss many opportunities for God to show us how wonderfully creative He is and can be through us.  When we follow the paths others have set, it gives us a sense of security but it may not bring us happiness or sincere joy God wants us to truly experience while we are here on earth. Life will not always follow the way we want but when we learn to not just follow learnt behavior but open ourselves for new experiences and ideas we will see that life is a wonderful adventure. I encourage you to try something new and get outside of the box and learn to be grateful for each moment of life you are given and learn to be everyday a Beacon of Light.

Beam of Light for the Week 

Tradition is a wonderful step towards progress; however it can be a chain that prevents us from reaching our full potential if they are outdated. Learn each day to build upon the traditions of our past as we progress towards our future.

Please feel free to comment what you think about the articles. 
I can be contacted at beaumonttodd@gmail.com

Past Wounds Present Sores

“Ouch,” I cried. I fell again for the sixth time. “I can’t do this!” I shouted. I stormed inside and slammed the door. Frustrated and discouraged, I sat and whined. I watched the other children and felt that they were taunting me as they rode up and down the street.

“What happened?” my aunt asked as I sat sulking. “I hate that bicycle!” I shouted.

My aunt smiled,” And what could the bicycle have done to possible gander such anger and disdain from you?” I went on to explain how I just kept falling off and how everyone laughed at me. My aunt kissed the top of my head and encouraged me to take a break away from trying, then to go back at it.

“This is impossible,” I growled at my cousin. Years later here I was trying to learn to drive a standard shift car I had recently bought. I had never driven a manual car before and it was exasperating trying to figure out how to use the clutch and to balance out using the gas pedal. “Hey you bought the car,” my cousin replied as he held his hands out. I was completely annoyed and felt like giving up. My cousin was being patient but I wasn’t getting it. Every time I tried to move the car it just stalled and shut off. As I was listening to him explain to me how to balance using the clutch and gas pedal as one unit, I started to think back to when I was first learning to ride a bike.

I still remember dusting dirt off myself a week after my aunt had encouraged me to be patient and try again. I was on my tenth fall and was ready to run back inside. Inside my heart I did not feel like giving up. My cousin was patient even then trying to help me learn how to ride. I looked at him and he told me it is up to you. He told me to believe in myself. I picked the bicycle up and determined in my heart to try again. As I rode the first five feet, I felt good but fell again. This time I did not feel as discouraged because I had managed to make some type of progress. It took me another ten more tries before I was able to ride smoothly without losing my balance. By the end of the day I was a bike rider and proud.

The engine sputtered again, but the car stayed on. I was able to go at least a quarter mile before the car sputtered and died. My cousin smiled at me with a cocky look like a peacock. “Ok, Ok you were right.” I laughed back as I tried again. By the end of the day I was driving with enough efficiency that I could manage to move without my engine shutting off. I was still timid about coming out of corners but I was able to at least manage to move from one point to another without being embarrassed about the car shutting off.

A Moment of Clarity

As children we learn the foundation of the habits and skills that will either help or hurt us as we grow and mature. Many times the hurts and disappointments we experience as children can turn into resentment and bitterness as adults if we never learn to properly confront such.  The fear of failure can grip and keep many persons from trying to achieve more in their lives. This is due to not wanting to face either disappointment or failure of achieving a set goal. We can further feel embarrassment, a sense of deep emotional lack on an individual’s part or even develop a sense that one is not good enough and should not try.

As individuals God has given all of us an individually unique path in life to walk. On this path we sometimes have a smooth walk and at others the path is quite rocky and difficult. The purpose of the smooth path is to give us opportunities to prepare for the times life will not go as well or smoothly as we like. The rocky paths are for us to learn and develop the skills or even new skills we need to grow and enjoy when we are on smooth paths. Often we do not take advantage of the rocky paths as God intended but instead became engrossed in the emotional baggage we develop on the way and miss the lessons completely.  This usually begins from childhood when the hurts or disappoints we experience we carry with us as adult and never properly learn to confront conflicts or disappointment. Today I encourage you to let your old hurts heal so they won’t be sores today as your learn each day to be a Beacon of Light.

 Beam of Light for the Week 

Say I love you to the people you cherish daily and never let a moment pass without showing gratitude when the opportunity presents itself.