OK I feel strongly enough about this that I am going to explain how Penn's remarks changed my life. I'm totally serious when I write this. I am a deist, but when he said that we needed to be totally honest with people, and that we could be totally honest and still be liked, I was struck as if by a bolt of lightening. You see, Penn was being honest, Mr.Randi is honest, and yet - deist that I am - I still respect, like and in the case of Mr.Randi I love him. As a woman who was raised to be meek and quiet and a "lady" I was in fear of being honest and losing the respect of those around me. I was always the tactful careful skeptic.
So, I decided from that moment to try being honest. To stop being rude by actually lying to people around me, and to try honesty. It has worked wonders. I can't believe the respect I've received and the fact that people are looking at me a new way.
Here is how I have changed my behavior in the past 24 hours. It started when I landed in Hartford and was riding on the little bus to the parking lot. It was bitterly cold and a woman with 2 small children was sitting across from me. She told the kids, "let's all think good thought that the car will start!" I asked her, "do you really think positive thinking will help your car start?" She looked up startled. "well, "she answered, "it can't hurt!" I smiled at her and said, "but what if your car doesn't start? Will your children think it's because they failed by not thinking enough positive thoughts?" She looked flustered then said, "well, I never thought of it like that before." She wasn't mad or anything, so I added, "wouldn't it be better to teach them that while you hope the car starts, if it doesn't you can easily get help from a garage. That these situations shouldn't be scarey or upsetting. OUr society has ways of taking care of problems like a car not starting." Then, it happened....the woman THANKED ME!
I went into school to work and took to the middle school two of Dr.Shermers books I had brought for the classroom. Usually the very educated middle school teachers kind of look at me as the flakey sweet art teacher. I handed them to the head teacher and instead of just dropping them off and hoping that he would read them, I said, "These books were written by an atheist. I think he has many points that should be read by ALL teachers." I then opened the book and made the teacher look at the table of contents. His eyes opened up, and he began to get excited about the books. He put them in his back pack to take home to get started on that night. And then he THANKED ME for taking the time to point out the finer points of the books.
I then was talking about the meeting when the janitor came by. I mentioned Penn and Teller were there, and she stopped to ask me who else had been there (she's a Penn and Teller fan). When I mentioned Ian Rowland, and cold reading, she stopped and said, "you mean Sylvia Browne isn't real? But she's on tv all the time, and no one says she isn't real!" I looked her in the eye and I said, "I say she isn't real. Penn and Teller say she isn't real. " I then did my own impromtu cold reading on another teacher standing there. (I did the "I see a M, Mary, Marie..." trust me I know I'm not good at it). The janitor was amazed, she had never even a suspicion that Sylvia Browne wasn't real. And then she THANKED ME!
I know some people are going to object, and that's fine. BUt, I can't tell you how good it felt to for once respect me own beliefs over a fear of people not liking me. I'm ready for the rebuffs. I think I can still be friends with those who disagree with me, but I like to think they are going to see it as a sign of my respect for them that I'm willing to tell them how I feel.
As Penn himself might put it, I am no longer going to BULLSH$T anyone!
Thank you Penn, with all my heart.
So, I decided from that moment to try being honest. To stop being rude by actually lying to people around me, and to try honesty. It has worked wonders. I can't believe the respect I've received and the fact that people are looking at me a new way.
Here is how I have changed my behavior in the past 24 hours. It started when I landed in Hartford and was riding on the little bus to the parking lot. It was bitterly cold and a woman with 2 small children was sitting across from me. She told the kids, "let's all think good thought that the car will start!" I asked her, "do you really think positive thinking will help your car start?" She looked up startled. "well, "she answered, "it can't hurt!" I smiled at her and said, "but what if your car doesn't start? Will your children think it's because they failed by not thinking enough positive thoughts?" She looked flustered then said, "well, I never thought of it like that before." She wasn't mad or anything, so I added, "wouldn't it be better to teach them that while you hope the car starts, if it doesn't you can easily get help from a garage. That these situations shouldn't be scarey or upsetting. OUr society has ways of taking care of problems like a car not starting." Then, it happened....the woman THANKED ME!
I went into school to work and took to the middle school two of Dr.Shermers books I had brought for the classroom. Usually the very educated middle school teachers kind of look at me as the flakey sweet art teacher. I handed them to the head teacher and instead of just dropping them off and hoping that he would read them, I said, "These books were written by an atheist. I think he has many points that should be read by ALL teachers." I then opened the book and made the teacher look at the table of contents. His eyes opened up, and he began to get excited about the books. He put them in his back pack to take home to get started on that night. And then he THANKED ME for taking the time to point out the finer points of the books.
I then was talking about the meeting when the janitor came by. I mentioned Penn and Teller were there, and she stopped to ask me who else had been there (she's a Penn and Teller fan). When I mentioned Ian Rowland, and cold reading, she stopped and said, "you mean Sylvia Browne isn't real? But she's on tv all the time, and no one says she isn't real!" I looked her in the eye and I said, "I say she isn't real. Penn and Teller say she isn't real. " I then did my own impromtu cold reading on another teacher standing there. (I did the "I see a M, Mary, Marie..." trust me I know I'm not good at it). The janitor was amazed, she had never even a suspicion that Sylvia Browne wasn't real. And then she THANKED ME!
I know some people are going to object, and that's fine. BUt, I can't tell you how good it felt to for once respect me own beliefs over a fear of people not liking me. I'm ready for the rebuffs. I think I can still be friends with those who disagree with me, but I like to think they are going to see it as a sign of my respect for them that I'm willing to tell them how I feel.
As Penn himself might put it, I am no longer going to BULLSH$T anyone!
Thank you Penn, with all my heart.
I've been trying to do the same myself, and give people the respect of what I actually think.
