Beliefs
Today is Friday the 13th. Do you believe it will be an unlucky day? If so, why?
Have you ever thought about why you believe what you believe? Where did it come from? Did you “inherit” the belief because it was taught to you by your parents or grandparents? These beliefs are like traditions only in thought form. Do you have traditions that you’ve always done and never knew why? Maybe it’s time to examine these beliefs and traditions to see if they are really for your best good.
Have you thought that traditions may have been created for not so important reasons? For example, a family could have a tradition of always eating a square pumpkin cake for Thanksgiving. This could have been passed down for generations. But what if that tradition was started because the original baker didn’t have a round cake pan and instead just used the square one she had? Does that mean you HAVE to get a square cake pan just for that tradition? Is it really that important? What would happen if you made a round pumpkin cake? Would your family balk and refuse to eat it because it’s not square? Would they even notice?
Think about some of your beliefs such as Friday the 13th may be unlucky and see if they really benefit you. For me, Friday the 13th is a movie and not specifically lucky or unlucky. In Chinese, the number 13 is actually good while 14 is bad because of the way they sound. 13 sounds like the words “must live,” while 14 sounds like “must die.” So for me, I don’t really choose the number 14 for much. That is an inherited belief. It doesn’t really harm me to use 14 for something. But I don’t go out of my way to use it as a favorite number. At least I know the origin of this belief. Now, it’s up to me to choose whether I keep it or let it go. If a belief or tradition no longer serves you, let it go and choose something new. It’s fun to create new things!