Many of us have been in one way or the other fell victims of second thought either in the positive direction or in the negative direction. The manifestation of second thought affirms the philosophical assertion that “man is a rational being”. It shows that we do not strictly act with instinct like animals rather we act with reason. Taking a particular portion in the bible as a case study and afterwards, bringing it down to our own ways of life, I will try to explain the idea of “second thought”. Continue Reading.................
It was a parable of a father who called his first son to send him on an errand, the son refused to go for the errand before his father, may be for one or two reasons. He left and his father called the son to send him the same errand and he accepted to go (Matthew 21:28-32). In their different second thoughts, they made parallel decisions opposite their previous decisions before their father. The first one had a rethink and decided to go for the errand and the second also had a rethink and decided not to go may be for a reason or reasons. The two were wrong but the difference is the time of the act. The first noticed that he was wrong and corrected himself but the second who would have been a hero left it and followed the wrong part.
In our daily lives, we make series of decisions, which of the sons do we act like? We may make some decisions as human beings which are not all that wonderful, we can still change them to better decisions. The problem here is, he/she who has made a wonderful decision and now changing it to bad decision as the second son. I may like to give some reasons why we act like this sometimes. On the first son.
1. We may out of joy or pleasure may have promised what is above us or what is evil, just like Herod in the bible who made a promise because of a dance by Salome and it took John the Baptist’s head (Matthew 14). If we have done that, the first son should be our model and redress not to act like Herod. It is not late to write the wrong.
2. We may also out of anger have made or said something that is not good, just like Elisha in the Bible told wild wolf out of anger to consume children who were mocking him and it came to pass (2 Kings 2:23-24), we can also redress for the harm it may curse may be much.
On the second son.
1. Sometime we change our decisions and do evil not that we so much like the evil but because of people around us. As Martin Heidegger said, “our death”, it is our decision to do good not because of others but because it is good. Do not follow the crowd that will lead you astray. It is not in everything that “igwe bu ike” is applicable.
2. It may be because of our own selfish interest. Oriri zuo oke, iwe ala, this is an Igbo adage that forbids selfishness. We should always try to accommodate others in anything we do and it will help us to make a right decision on our second thoughts.
It is not that all have been exhausted but just for simplicity and limitation of space. There are many reasons why we make second choices both negative and positive. Those that are negative, we should try and eliminate like the first son and those that are positive we should try to uphold and not behave like the second son. Every “second thought” is a necessary thing and we should always allow it to produce good and perfect result. Let our “second thought always be the best” Thanks.
Tobe Eze (DAN~HILL)
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