RED KEY...GREEN KEY

We have a home in Sarasota that is surrounded by tropical vegetation. The key to this house is labeled GREEN (for vegetation) on my key ring. Our condo in Miami is at the Ritz, and the key is RED. We have no personal responsibility for gardening in Miami, actually, Coconut Grove. Usually I reach for my green key automatically because we spend so much more time in Sarasota that even when we spend a weekend in Miami it's the green front door key that I reach for there. We just came back from about 10 days in Miami and after the first few days in our condo I automatically began using the red key. On our return to Sarasota, I now take my keys out of my pocket select the red one and wonder why the door won't open.

This Pavlovian response reminds me of our travels to foreign lands, particularly ones where I can speak the language, Spain for example. After about a week there, I no longer think in English and translate into Spanish. I think in Spanish and speak without translating. On our return to America, for the first few days I think in Spanish and have to translate anything I wish to say into English.

How many other times during our lives does this happen...that we condition ourselves to do things a certain way, or hold certain opinions and when our context or surroundings change or we are in a very different situation, we default to a response equivalent to our green key. And, we expect it will be the "key" that will open our door. I guess I am arguing against AUTO-PILOT in all things. Though convenient, conditioned responses and habits often do not serve us and narrow our world. Learning styles such as the "I already know the answer" which is so common are a prime example. Emotional responses to adverse or perceived adverse situations are another. What if we paused a moment, gave it some thought, and tailored our choices with each input we received, whether it is something another person says or some perceived adversity that has been thrown in our direction...maybe we would pick the correct key on the first try.