Sunday, July 20, 2008

Mama On: Being Honest With Yourself.

"Always trust your first mind."

We've all heard that actions speak louder than words, but the skilled Mamaknologist has learned to read action as an indicator of character. While it may be simpler to interpret actions according to whim and felicity, translating them into what we would most like to be told or see, it doesn't work in the short run. And, in the long run, wishing will never make it so.

The person who promises everything and delivers nothing is never going to be the person you want to trust with a cherished secret, a family heirloom, a sensitive job, or your heart. And the only person you can trust to know this is yourself. A lot of people call this effort, trusting your intuition. The true Mamaknology lies in trusting your initial and heart-bound instinct: something my mother called, trusting your first mind.

I would, in fact be lying if I said that no Mamaknologist ever succumbed to the urge to ignore her first mind. And, yes, even after being raised at the knee of the 20th Century's leading Mamaknologist, I've slipped myself (a few hundred times...), but that doesn't make the lesson or the counsel any less valuable. When something doesn't feel right, learn to trust yourself to know that it's not right, and go forward in faith. My mother used to say that the real trick was to stop listening to what you want to hear, and listen to what is/was being said BEFORE you commit yourself.

I think she was right.

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