Under the Influence

Hello Friends, 


I'd like to point out this is 2 blogs in 2 days  - that is the level of dedication I have to you all (or it might have something to do with the fact I have a massive textbook next to me and no inclination to read it...) but still, 2 days in a row of bloggy fun, Hooray!

Have you ever had one of those moments when you realise that you're doing something completely out of character and you've no idea why? Or have you stopped to think 'Why did I do this? Why did I choose this?' I don't mean massive, life-altering decisions (although it would be a good idea to think those through too) I mean little things like 'Why did I pick this sandwich?' or 'When did I start wearing grey nail varnish? I hate grey...' 

I ask because recently it's been happening to me a lot. It all started when I was in the bath in my parents house and was reaching for the shampoo. However, I stopped myself when I saw that it was a 2-in-1 and not a separate shampoo and conditioner situation. And I suddenly thought 'I've been living here for years, we always have 2-in-1, why am I suddenly against it?' 

I know this is thrilling so far, but let me explain. In my first year at uni, I went on an ASDA trip with some girls who were lovely but I didn't know very well. One of the girls....Suzie...was buying shampoo and went to pick up a 2-in-1 when another one said 'Oh, I don't think that works as well as using shampoo, and then conditioner.' A completely innocent occurrence. Suzie bought separate bottles, her hair looked lovely, everyone was happy. But I realised that from that point onwards, and never before, I stopped getting 2-in-1s and it wasn't until I was in this bath 2 years later that I realised how much one girl's non-chalant comment had changed my opinion. 

Now, if you've read any of these blogs before, you know that I am a very lazy, and, let's say it, disgusting person. That's who I am, for better or worse (mostly worse). I've gone days without showering but I suddenly freeze when there's only a 2-in-1 shampoo in the bathroom - what's up with that? 

I'm not saying that those girls did some jedi mind trick on me, and now I'm sane again. They're lovely, well-meaning girls and I think that's what influenced me. Because they're quite pretty and lovely and friendly, somewhere in my head I said 'I want to be a pretty lovely friendly person. Pretty lovely friendly people use separate shampoo and conditioners. Ergo, bye bye 2-in-1'

Ok, I don't think my subconscious used the word 'ergo' but you get my point. The people we're with have a scary amount of influence on us, even right down to the little things. How we dress, what we joke about, what modules we pick on our courses are, in some way or another, affected by our friends, people we want to be around or be like. And I'm not saying that's a bad thing, but then it makes you wonder who's influencing me? And how much should we be caring what other people think? I would have thought that in a heartbeat I would have said 'Not one jot. Other people suck. Bit of me and a lot more of Jesus and you can leave the rest, ta.' But we are always being shaped, whether we like it or not, so should we then be trying to get shaped by people worth emulating?  

And who am I influencing and how? To think that I'm rubbing off on someone (bingo) is quite a responsibility to be an awesome person to be like. What if my little blog is turning everyone who reads it into non-showering, fart happy boundary-breakers? Now there's a cool and scary thought...