Sunday 3 March 2013

You Become What You Behold

Have you noticed this like I have? Whether I love someone or hate them, I gradually aquire a few of their characteristics, mannerisms and attitudes over time if I am around them enough or watching them often. Sometimes, you do not even need to see who you are 'beholding'. Even thinking consistently about someone for long can change you.
I have an aquaintance who recently fell in love with a girl and they are now dating. He respects and cherishes her very much and has found, to his amusement, that he now says things that were previously only said by her and even waves goodbye like her. It was his consistent meetings with and thoughts of this girl that made him similar to her in these small ways. There are other instances when we are impacted by others and it is not to our good. Sometimes it is even our fault how they impact us. Robert Boyle, an Irish scientist who lived in the fifteenth century once, as a young man, teased a boy about his hopeless stutter. ' P-p-p-poor b-b-boy can't sp-sp-speak prop-p-perly!' he would taunt, and this teasing became second nature until stuttering became his first. It took him years to stop the habit. He learned a lesson as a boy that he would act on for the rest of his life. You become what you behold, whether you wish to or not.

Of course I do not mean literally. I do not mean that if you beheld a cat for long enough, that you would become a cat. I do not mean that you aquire physical characteristics, I mean that you aquire mannerisms, attitudes and character traits of all you have beheld. And since you have beheld everyone you have ever known, they will impact you, however positively or negatively.

Who do you behold? Who are you becoming? Who do you want to be? Who should you behold to help you accomplish that?

2 comments:

Elizabeth said...

Thanks for a wonderful and thought-provoking post Ginny. :)

Cassie said...

Guess what? Because I 'behold' YOU often enough, I now say cute things I wouldn't have two years ago! All your little darling words and ways are rubbing off on me! I also hope that some of your other beautiful attributes and characteristics rub off on me too.

xoxoxo