Muscle memory, brain training and changing mindsets

My brain was exploding with analogies while on the treadmill at the gym today. A few months back I had made some voice notes (also while on the treadmill) on the same topic, but have just not had the time to put it all together. This is my one plop of thought (on a particular angle) in a huge ocean of thought and ideas out there. I love social media and interact with a wide variety of people on various topics, specifically on Facebook. The topic of racism comes up often and unfortunately when an incident happens, it's like many people dissolve into a puddle of rage and anger with comments of 'not again' and wanting every harsh consequence in the book thrown at the person/people, but then not much is done to speak about how could that have been handled better? or what is a better way forward? It seems to just leave people with their boiling anger and going nowhere. We need to get out of that puddle! We need a goal to aim at so we don't just swim in murky puddle water. (There are a few things circulating that are helpful in showing the way forward.) And, absolutely people need to be called to account for their words and actions. The way forward just needs to be clearer and the acknowledgement that it is a long road walking intentionally (training) in the same direction that will bring about transformation.

I think we would all rather choose to follow someone who inspires us and calls us to do and live better. Just think back to school days and the teachers that you loved, not because they were not strict, but because they believed in you and spurred you on towards your goals, even if you messed up and failed along the way. We need people around us who will keep saying 'C'mon South Africa, you can do this, let's get up again, we can get this right. Let's keep going. Let's keep moving forward.'

Whenever I am on the treadmill, I get to watch swimming training go on in the pool below. This one particular teacher seems to be sought after (I am presuming the kids like her and she gets results). She takes the child's feet and flaps them up and down in the water for a while, then she lets go. The child then tries on their own (much slower) and then she takes the feet and flaps them up and down again. I have seen her take their arms and, over and over, make the arm go in the right position for swimming. She is always encouraging and continually showing them what the correct positions are. I see this muscle training in the same light as brain training. It starts with baby steps and much encouragement when we are learning something new. There will always be someone around us starting their journey towards something and they need the encouragement to keep going. There is also always someone else in another lane, who is much further along in their journey, maybe even at Olympic level. Those people have the choice to stay in their own lane and scoff at those who are only starting or who are not getting it, or they can use their expertise to encourage and inspire the beginners to follow after them. Be amazed at their progress. I watched the one mom get so excited at her young child's progress, with her camera in hand to record the event. She was so happy and smiling from ear to ear. We should always be excited at baby steps. I noticed one quite overweight person at the gym today - just imagine if someone had to say something negative to them and all their bravery to get this far just crumbled? How sad that would be. When someone starts the journey out of racism, don't scoff at their first basic steps just because you are further along in the journey. Encourage and spur them on in their journey. Each step forward in the right direction is worth getting excited about.

Our brains and muscles need time to learn new things and it's time and repetition that will get us there. Many people use the term 'recovering racist' just like someone walking out of addiction. It's a pretty apt term as white people growing up in apartheid South Africa grew up with racist attitudes everywhere and so for most it was the norm because brain pathways were set in that mode through time and repetition. The only way to renew, transform, change, recover from these set patterns is by new patterns learnt over time with much repetition. The focus always needs to be on the end goal. Addicts have a recovery plan when they come out of rehab and normally a support system around them to help keep them accountable. The question we maybe need to ask is where do we want to go? We are always going somewhere because we are goal seeking by nature. We need to choose and be very intentional about it. We need to set our language towards what we want and not what we don't want (the quote above speaks to this.)

Today was the first time in a few months that I was able to go back to gym. I have suffered quite badly with my asthma in recent months. In thinking about this blog, I was feeling mixed emotions with my exercise non-regime! It felt like starting all over again, but it's not really that, it's just a case of catching up to where I was and taking it forward from there. I had a choice - discouragement at the lost time or excitement that I was back and ready to go. We have a choice on a daily basis when we mess up in the way we treat others. We can get discouraged and say it's too hard to change and just give up, or we can be excited about getting back up and trying again. Put one foot in front of the other, be intentional and ask what's next? What was my goal again? Right, let's go. There are a few words and phrases that I believe could be hugely transforming in our way forward, and those are humility, interdependence and vulnerability. It will take great courage to express these but we will all benefit in the most excellent of ways. We need each other to see all there is to see. Brain pathways (like muscles in learning to swim) need time and lots of repetition to replace old thinking. The great news is, it can be done. There's such great hope for our country.