This week the kids and I watched back-to-back PBS specials. About why humans developed into the overwhelming force that we are, rather than Neanderthals or apes. And how we manage to be happy.
If you were to blend the two different shows together, the message -- suitable for Choice Moms -- is this: our ability to adapt is what makes us strong.
In the show about emotions, they interviewed a former POW, who was tortured and in solitary confinement for eight years in Vietnam, but who doesn't regret those years away from his family because they made him into the man he is today. They interviewed a young man who became paralyzed and now is CEO of his own skincare line as a result. The interviewed a major lottery winner who, unlike counterparts who changed their lives dramatically and became focused on partying, sent family members to college and did the performance art he always wanted to do, but HIS way. (He also bought a major league NYC penthouse and filled it with Italian decor.)
In Alan Alda's exploration of the Human Spark, we saw that in the archeological sand pits of Africa and Europe scientists are finding more evidence. What led our version of Man to spread might have been the ability to not only create new technologies (in those days, spears and arrows rather than simply knives) but socially interact and communicate with others about how best to use them. Unlike Neanderthals, who were simply hearty enough to withstand climate changes for a time, our ancestors adapted tools and living styles in order to grow as a community.
What was interesting in both shows to me was the message that standing your ground and fighting was not necessarily the key to well-being. Rather, when you see that there are some things out of your control, and adapt your mind to wrap around new solutions, you are more likely to shed blocks that hold you in place and move ahead to a stronger future.
So...as I watched these disparate shows, I couldn't help but think of Choice Moms.
We are strong and hearty, yes. But the happiest among us DO seem to be the adaptable ones. We find new solutions if the old idea isn't working. We find community connections to help bring us to a new level.
I'm excited about the new Choice Mom resources I'm unveiling in this new 2010. Some of the old tools are being adapted, and new ones are emerging in order to solve the needs of the community.
What about you? Is the path you are on working for you? Or is it time to think of a new way around something that has been blocking you for too long? Do you need to do a better job of reaching out to community this year? Do you have a fertility plan that needs markers: this many IUI, then I save for IVF or adoption? Do you have an adoption strategy that is moving forward?
Heading into 40
8 years ago
