Manipulated by Invisible Threads

"This year, I will be reborn as a new me."
How many times have we made that vow?
In the crisp air of New Year's Day, or at the milestone of a birthday, we wish for a fresh start.
However, before we know it, the calendar turns to the next page, and we are tracing the same old ruts of our daily routine as yesterday.
Each time, we blame ourselves, saying we have "weak willpower" or are "just lazy," and with a sigh, we give up on the dream of self-transformation.

But what if the phenomenon of "being unable to change" is not merely caused by an individual's weak willpower?
What if there exist invisible threads, deep within our bodies—from the wiring of our brains to the spirals of our genes—that force us with irresistible power to "remain the same as yesterday"?
This is not a journey to find excuses for a self that cannot change.
Rather, it is a contemplation to look at a certain kind of destiny that lies at the root of our existence as human beings.

✅ The Miser Named the Brain, Choosing the "Me of Yesterday"

The brain, seated inside our skulls, possesses astonishing abilities while simultaneously having a side as an extremely skilled "miser."
Despite accounting for only about 2% of our body weight, it is a glutton that consumes about 20% of all the energy the body uses.
Therefore, the brain is constantly striving to maximize energy efficiency.
Its most effective strategy is "habituation."

Just as we don't think about how to ride a bicycle once we've learned, or don't consciously think about the order in which we brush our teeth, the brain automates repeated actions and delegates them to the unconscious realm.
This frees us from the energy-intensive task of conscious thought.
The fact that we take the same commute every day and order the same coffee at the same cafe is nothing more than the brain recommending the most energy-efficient—in other words, the "easiest"—option.

Here, the first wall of self-transformation stands in our way.
New challenges, such as learning a new language or jogging early in the morning, force the brain to build new neural pathways.
For the brain, this is a major task akin to clearing a path through unpaved wasteland, and it requires a vast amount of energy.
The miserly brain instinctively dislikes this waste.

Furthermore, what psychology calls "status quo bias" accelerates this tendency.
Humans are designed to feel far greater pain from losing what is known than from gaining unknown benefits.
Change, even if it has the potential to bring good results, always carries the risk of "losing current stability."
The brain overestimates this potential loss and guides us toward the safe option of "not changing."

In other words, the reason we "cannot change" is not because we are lazy.
Rather, it is the result of our brains making extremely rational judgments in accordance with their survival strategy.
The brain is quietly, yet powerfully, commanding us to stay in the familiar, safe burrow rather than taking the risk of stepping out into the unknown wilderness.

✅ Our Genes, Carrying the Memories of the Savanna

Let us turn our perspective deeper, toward the origins of human history.
Even in this modern society where skyscrapers stand tall and the internet connects the world in an instant, the genetic blueprint that governs our bodies has hardly changed since the hunter-gatherer era tens of thousands of years ago.
Our minds and bodies still carry vivid memories of the time when we wandered the African savanna.

For humanity at that time, the world was full of unpredictable dangers.
Attacks by wild beasts, food shortages, sudden changes in climate.
The top priority for survival amidst all this was to minimize risk.
If you found a safe water hole yesterday, you go there again today.
If you picked non-poisonous nuts yesterday, you eat them again today.
Considering the possibility that poison might be lurking in an unknown spring or that an unfamiliar plant might take your life, "acting the same as yesterday" was the most excellent survival strategy.

This survival instinct to avoid change and repeat known patterns is deeply ingrained in us at the genetic level.
The anxiety we feel in modern society about changing jobs, the fear of jumping into an unknown community, the hesitation to start a new lifestyle—the roots of these emotions may be the memories of our ancestors, who were wary of predators lurking behind unknown bushes on the savanna, flowing through us.

If you open social media, the spectacular "changes" others have achieved jump out at you.
Starting a business, moving abroad, dramatic physical transformations.
Every time we see them, we feel impatient with ourselves for not being able to change.
However, that impatience might be a phenomenon unique to the modern age.
Our genes are originally programmed to approve of "not changing" and to seek stability.
The friction between the values of modern society, which praises rapid change and constantly demands self-transformation, and the ancient memories residing in our bodies might be one of the causes of the difficulties modern people face.

✅ Can We Cut the Strings of the Marionette?

Looking at it this way, it is as if we are controlled by invisible marionette strings.
One is the string of "brain thriftiness," which tries to suppress energy consumption.
The other is the string of "genetic memory," which commands us to avoid danger and seek stability.
These strings are skillfully manipulated in our subconscious, trying to pull us back to the same stage as yesterday.

So, are we just resigned to this fate?
Are we destined to walk forever on a fixed circle without ever changing?

Perhaps there is no simple answer to that question.
However, if there is one ray of light, it may lie in the very act of "becoming aware of the existence of the strings."
Knowing the mechanism behind why you hesitate to take a new step.
That becomes the first step toward quietly accepting the true state of human existence, rather than blindly blaming and tormenting yourself for not being able to change.

Upon that, we ask ourselves again.
Knowing the existence of these strings and noticing their gravitational pull, to still try to move even one finger by our own will.
Even if that movement is faint and a resistance so small that no one notices, therein lies the dignity of being human, not just a marionette.

Are we dancing by our own will?
Or are we just being manipulated?
The journey to find that answer will likely last a lifetime.
And that questioning itself might be the most human activity permitted to us, resisting the invisible threads.

✅ Official LINE Account

For consultations on mental well-being or advice on housework and childcare,
please contact me via LINE.😊

✅Notice

✅Recommended Reading

✅Information

🐰X (formerly Twitter)(Please follow me😊)
🐰Instagram(Come and take a look😊)

📖Blog
　🔹Househusband's Fun Life Blog(A blog about various things for a househusband living happily)
　🔹Lin☆Dark's Housework MAX(A blog supporting those who want to become househusbands)　
　🔹Lin☆Dark's Side Hustle Techniques(A blog with information on doing side hustles while being a househusband)

🔵Work Requests(Graphic Design)
🔵Announcements
🗺Site Map

🙌I would be overjoyed if you could support me!😍

#Essay #Column #Lifestyle #DailyUpdates #DailyNote #LivingEasily #LivingHappily #Life #ShortStory #Story