A few seasons ago, my husband removed the entire fence surrounding our garden so he could replace it. Since the gate was in good shape, for a short while it stood as a solitary reminder of the former enclosure. It struck me as a bit of visual humor to see a gate with no fence. As the photo indicates, our dog fully realized that he could access the other side without using the gate. He didn’t even need the big stick to get there. Maybe we would do well to think like a dog!
Looking back, I think of the times that we humans may get so stuck in our ways that we don’t consider an alternative way. Our habits run deep. In the midst of my career, the path I normally drove to work changed because one of the roads I took was permanently closed. Consequently, it took some time for my left hand to not automatically engage my turn signal at that stop sign. As the saying goes, old habits die hard.
The same thing could be true with mainstream thought or following the crowd. Perhaps something has always been done a certain way because Sally and Joe have done it that way. Maybe you are afraid to look different or odd by forging a different path or trying something new.
I call this the yellow brick road syndrome. The path is already marked out. No thinking is required. The directions are obviously there. The question becomes, is that really where you want to go?
Be like a dog!
Dogs seem to be led by their nose. Their tails leave no mystery as to their feelings.
Did you know there are over 300 words for love in canine? Gabriel Zevin
The dog lives for the day, the hour, even the moment. Robert Falcon Scott
We would do well to gravitate toward that which we love, to express that exuberance, to live in the moment!
Revisiting our gate, I’ve always gone through it rather than around. Passing through that gate had been the only way to access the area on the other side. Old habits can blind you to the possibility that suddenly there is another way to reach the goal.
In the bigger picture, this tells me that in any situation we must be aware. We should think for ourselves. The art teacher in me encourages us to be creative. Always there are new ways to be discovered of doing virtually anything. Life can be far more interesting rather than boring brown if we entertain changes like this. Finally, here are three of my posts which offer help to encourage more creativity for you: EMPOWERED LIVING, Creativity 101 with 528 Hertz and CREATIVE PROBLEM SOLVING.
As with our fence-less gate, don’t be stopped by what’s not there. Even our dog knew he could go around it!
So timely-hwy34&69(All the ways to go Anywhere )have been shut off&down this month.”The audacity of doing their job ‘without our permission’ was &is mind-blowing”. We have to get up Before they start work&drive crudely-4-wheeling up the curbs(after a while it’s kinda fun).Even snuck through parking lot.&Like You say,’it is better to take a dog.route/routine.LOL
The gate story is a simple reminder for me to consider alternatve ways of thinking about almost anything! Thank you, Linda, for your clever reminder. The fact that I haven’t noticed this gate without a fence shows I cam become more aware of what I am seeing!