Oct
Character Molding
The process of molding with molten metal is ancient and simple. Perhaps you have noticed that water takes the shape of the glass into which it is poured. Once the water is removed from the glass, it loses the shape. Molten metal pours like water. The idea of a mold is to create a cavity of a desired shape. The molten metal is poured into the mold cavity, where it assumes its shape. As it cools, the metal becomes hard. It hardens in the shape of the mold cavity.
The same process is used in making fancy candles and plaster items.
If the mold cavity is detailed and well-sculpted, you get a good looking product. There will not be much additional work needed to make it a masterpiece. If the mold is crude or defective, then there will be a lot of work afterward to turn the product into art. The better the mold, the less work needed to make a fine finished item.
Our childhood environment and experiences mold us into the adult that each of us will become. Family, school, neighborhood and other things shape our character, much as the mold shapes metal. Just as a good mold makes a finished product that needs less work, so a good childhood instills character. It only needs to be refined as the individual matures. On the other hand, a bad youthful experience might result in flawed character. Trouble at school, a dysfunctional family and a turbulent environment can leave parts of one’s character missing. Refinement will take a lot of effort and time.
The results of our molding are not written in stone. Having a bad childhood experience does not mean that a bleak future is inevitable. It only means that you have to work harder on yourself to improve. Molding only gives us a start. What we do with that molding is what makes a difference. Our childhood experiences may go a long way in determining who we will become, but they are not the end of the matter. We can each be better than our past.
Remember that principle is not bound by precedent., An example is flying. The principle of flight has always existed, but we could not use it until the Wright brothers came along. The fact that nobody ever flew prior to the Kitty Hawk flight did not stop the Wrights from flying. They were not bound by the precedent of non-flight. They flew.
You are not bound by precedent. You might have had an awful childhood. You might have been a crude person with some questionable attitudes and a flawed character. That does not mean you are bound to be miserable. You can put it all behind you and become the person you want to be. Your past is not an anchor that holds you to it. You can be better than your past. All it takes is the desire and the effort to make the change.
