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entries for 2002/11/21

faith and the monkey trap

Here is how to catch a monkey:

First, go somewhere that has monkeys.
Take a gourd, coconut, or your favorite piece of tupperware and create a hole just small enough for a monkey's hand to go through.
Put some monkey food inside the hole. (If you do not know what monkeys eat, you might want to interview several first. Don't mention that you're trying to capture monkeys - especially if you plan to eat your monkey or dress it in funny clothes, as your interviewee may take offense and pelt you with dung)
Wait around for a monkey. If you don't seem to be getting a lot of monkeys, you might consider placing an ad in Monkey Monthly.
When the monkey sees your trap, he will put his hand inside. As he grabs the food, he makes a fist. If the hole was made correctly, his fist will be too big to get back out.
Unwilling to let go of the food, the monkey will just stay there until you come along and catch him. (Make sure your traps are tied down securely - tupperware isn't cheap!)

The trap works because the monkey cares more about this food he can't eat have than he does about his own freedom. If he could simply let go, he'd have a happier (and longer) life.

Smart as we are, we get caught in monkey traps of our own. We cling to a secure job we don't really love. Or we stay with the wrong person.

Unlike the monkey, we can escape. We know that if anyone has escaped their job and risen to financial freedom, then there's probably a way that we can do it too. We know that if we invest time into making new friends and becoming better people, we will probably find better and more fufilling relationships.

We can think these things easily and see the logic. But we may not feel it. We may be scared. But that's our monkey mind, telling us we need to have that piece of food. What sets us apart is that we can trust in the vision of something better. The more we focus, the stronger that vision - and we ourselves become. By focusing our energies on our vision, we can develop confidence in ourselves and we develop faith. And with that faith, we gain a uniquely human power: we can let go of our fear, and claim our freedom.