A funny thing happened to me this morning. Funny strange, not funny ha ha.
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I was eating breakfast in the cafeteria at work. My typical breakfast is usually something like a veggie sandwich from Subway or some yogurt with raisins and flax seeds - not because I'm some sort of granola-munching hippie - I just like how I feel when I usually eat like that.
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But today I decided I wanted scrambled eggs, a piece of sausage, and a biscuit so that's what I got and I was happily munching down when in walks the Dietitian from work and I was hit with an intense wave of remorse - as if the Breakfast Police were going to come check my breakfast against their master list and rap me on the knuckles with a ruler or something.
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None of the Dietitians at work ever do that sort of thing. They are always pleasant and professional and positive. And I, having had just about as much nutrition training as they have, know I'd done nothing wrong. But the guilt was still there.
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Reminds me of another curious interaction I've had with several people over the years.
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Occasionally I'll run into a former student of mine and they will almost invariably act excited to see me and tell me how they were just telling so-and-so that they wanted to start back in my classes that very night! It's amazing how every time I run into a former student they were already planning to come to class that very night! It's like some statistical Twilight Zone or something.
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They never tell me, "Aikido bored me to tears," or "I decided to spend my time doing yoga instead of judo," or even "It's just not my thing." They act like they are reluctant to hurt my feelings by taking responsibility for their own lives and leisure time. They act like they are guilty of something.
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How is it that we have turned taking responsibility for our own health and activities into a society of guilt?
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Patrick Parker
www.mokurendojo.com
