Habit

De Botton’s “Habit” is a familiar story to me. Not only do I share his thoughts on the subject, but also his stories. When he explained how one becomes accustomed to something, I agreed about how easy it is to for something to become a habit. When I grew up, everything seemed so trivial. It was either a routine, or maybe a slight deviation from the routine. And now I look back at those times and wonder why I ever thought those routines seemed trivial. I feel that human nature pulls these kinds of tricks all the time. We are never satisfied. I feel that we constantly look for something better or more exciting. Regardless of quality, we want novelty. It’s no wonder that novelty sells. Even in fashion I feel that a style goes out of style in a matter of weeks. Yet, probably in a year or two it will return. It’s inevitable that change is always desired and familiarity is avoided. My stay here at Prague has certainly been delightful. I would have never guessed that I would have so much fun here. I went grocery shopping today and while I was walking to and fro from the store, I realized that in a few days I would be leaving this place and probably never return. The thought of never returning to a place I regarded as my home for four months was unsettling. Though I am ready to go home, I also know that I will miss this place greatly. Even the little trivial things I hated to do, like walking across the bridge to class, will probably be something I will reminisce about at home. I remember my mom once telling me that habit is a scary thing. I never understood how scary habit could be until I realized that habit is something you have absolute no control of. Regardless of that habit being a positive or negative one, I understood what she meant about habit being frightening.