U-pun my word, my title is serious.
Habits are very serious things indeed. Without them, we would
have to figure out certain actions anew each shining or foggy
day. I suppose memory would help, but morning routines would be
matters for attention, rather than things to be done on
autopilot
while planning the day. So clearly habits are not all bad;
in fact, they make orderly life possible. And habits do come in
series -- one leads to the next, and they supplement
each other. We have a series of actions to get us up and cleaned
and dressed and looking our best for whatever sort of day we see
ahead. Then another series gets the car out and down the
driveway and navigating the morning traffic. We can arrive at work
having forgotten a very important errand that we intended to do
on the way, but which was not a part of our usual routine.
Other habits cannot be regarded as good without some thought.
We can gradually stay up later and later, and acquire all the ills
of sleep deprivation. We can consistently stop in at the bar
on the way home for a few drinks and some fried food, without
consideration for calories or a history of family heart troubles
or the possibility of having to breathe into a police machine
for a routine alcohol check.
Clearly bad habits are hard to change, but good habits are
wonderful. At the very best, we can put a good habit into the
place of a bad one. The worst option is to pay habits no
attention, and they will indeed look after themselves.
