What does a frog, a dirty nappy, 
bread and coffee have in common.
More than you think
Earlier this week, a fellow South African blogger Theuns Serfontein published a post about gratitude. I would like to add to that post by using a frog, nappy, bread and some coffee.
You have no doubt heard what happens to a frog if you throw it in hot water – It does everything it can to get out. But throw it in cold water and heat the water slowly, and our frog will keep swimming until the heat paralyzes it and it boils
The same happens when your little one has a dirty nappy. You smell that foul thing and change it immediately. But sometimes you are so busy chasing her around to get the new nappy on that you forget about the old one that fell of the bed and rolled under it.
You catch the little one, put on the new nappy, give her a bottle and relax. Unaware of the smelly nappy. A little later your loving wife comes home and makes a beeline to your daughter to change her nappy (because she can smell the dirty nappy). That’s when your remember the old nappy and the search starts. But you are unable to smell the nappy.
The same goes for freshly baked bread or freshly brewed coffee. At first smell it smells soooo good. But after a few minutes the smell starts to fade and then disappears.
Did it really disappear?
As soon as you walk out of the room and back in again, you will find that it still smells just as good. So what happened.
Nature, and humans in particular are extraordinary. As soon as something forms part of our environment and we have identified it as nonthreatening, our brain shut it out from our perception.
We focus on the task at hand and ignore more than 80% of what is going on around us. You don’t notice your heartbeat, your body sweating, or the sound the watch makes.
But when you stand back, get out of the room, and walk back in – then you notice everuthing that’s going on.
So take some time to stand back. Stop thinking about your to do list and focus on now.
Where in your life is the nappy?
Or worse still the hot water – Realize what is going on and then take action.
Where in your life do you have your fresh bread and coffee.
What have you forgotten about, that makes your life better.
Start with the small things. A bed to sleep in, a roof over your head, some warm clothes in the winter.
Move on to the bigger things like eating out at a restaurant, having a car to drive.
And then look at the HUGE things, a loving wife and family. Having the time and health to play with your children.
And for me the biggest thing. A group hug, with your spouse at one end and a small mouth giving your cheek a kiss on the other.
Be motivated to day – To count your blessings
(and smell the nappies 
Kind of scary when you think we ignore 80% of what’s going on around us. As you pointed out it would be too easy to ignore the good things (smell of bread, hugs) if we are in the mode of not noticing.
Thanks, good post.
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Hey Ben,
Enjoyed your article and really appreciate the value of this subject. It’s so important to be aware of the little things in our life and to not allow ourselves to become numb and accepting to the things that need to be changed. Thanks for the inspiration!
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Hi Ben,
Thanks for this. T’is true that we get so caught up in where we want to go that we forget to live in the now. That reminds of Eckhardt Tolle’s work (The Power of Now, etc). If you aren’t aware of his work, I’m sure you would enjoy it. Appreciation, gratitude, love…that’s what it is truly all about.
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Hi Ben,
I have to confess I have never seen such a bizarre collection of random objects go into making up a blog post with such a great message. Kudos to you!
Echo Joyce, it is scary to think we are unaware of 80% of what’s going on around us because our brains have just filtered it out.
And thank you – I had always wondered how when you first bring flowers into a room they smell so wonderful yet after a while the smell ‘disappears’. Now I know, awesome post, thanks!
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Great analogies man. It is so true. We can get all caught up in the details and day-to-day work on our quests to our goals and dreams that we forget to step back and be thankful for all our blessings and accomplishments we’ve achieved along the way.
I also like how you explained Maslow’s hierarchy of needs at the end of the post. We must start small and work our way up…..
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That is a wonderful story. I had noticed that same phenomenon with perfume. I think that is why some people tend to overdo it.
Debbie
Debbie Lattuga recently posted..But I Can’t Draw
Well Said!
It works the same when you are out walking the dogs. Stop to pick up there “smelly business” and put it in my pocket till I get to the next trash can.
I have two large dogs and sometimes ours walks are just so busy that I walk right past that garbage can because now it is just “business” and no more smelly.
HOWEVER, the next day when I put on my dog walking vest it is just an unpleasant surprise, you bet at that point I quickly put it into the garbage can!
Good thing Kids and Dogs are Cute!!
Thanks for the reminder to take notice of what’s around us. It’s so important to appreciate what we have around us and be grateful for what we already have.
So true so true. We need to all take a step back and reassess everything. It is a great life that we live and we need to make the most of it.
Thanks for the great post.
Hey Ben
An interesting style of analogies. Must admit that I tend to just rush by the days and not stop to smell the flowers so to say. Suppose we have to sit back at some time and enjoy the moment as time just whizzes pass us with a blink of an eye. Thanks for the reminder to reflect.
Hi Ben,
This is an awesome article. It really made me think and chuckle. I’ve been learning about the concept of conscious and subconscious and it is so true that we are normally not hooked into 80 percent of what is happening around us as humans. I love developing awareness.
I’ve always thought that the frog analogy is bewildering. You are correct. We as humans do the same thing. That is how society can be engineered to behave in certain ways. Circumstances are designed to be presented slow and steady, without shock or startling people. Then they go with the flow. For example, remember when there was no such thing as credit cards?
Thanks for the article. Yes, I do count my blessings!
Raena Lynn
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Thanks for the wonderful blog post. I make it my business to be grateful to wake up everyday. Life is a true blessing. I live by the expression: “Yesterday’s history. Tomorrow’s a mystery. Today is a gift. That’s why they call it ‘The present’ .”
Accept all of your gifts and blessings. Life is truly beautiful.
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Very interesting post. I guess we are in our comfort zone when our mind has been shut down because it is used to its environment. People and animals do get used to things and then ignore them both good and bad. Unfortunately, people do it with relationships.
Ben,
Tonight I decided to live in the now moment. I have been eating a low carbohydrate diet for several months with only occasional slips into carbs. But tonight I wanted dessert and then I thought of the perfect one – Fried Ice Cream. That was so extraordinarily delicious that it covered my craving for at least another week, maybe two. Well worth being in the moment and savoring the flavor.
Erica
Dr. Erica Goodstone recently posted..Your Mind Controls Your Body
nice analogy, it’s so true that sometimes while we became so become so focused on pleasing our boss or achieving something we tend to see small things that happens.
Just like in a relationships, we tend to give every material things to our partners but sometimes we missed out little things that can make him truly happy, like hugs, kisses and even short text message that warms her heart.
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Very nice post reminding us to be aware of what is around us. I believe it is important to stop and smell the coffee. I do think it is important to have laser like focus at times on what you are trying to accomplish and remove the distractions for that short period of time. And in that we’ll have balance
It is challenging to have laser like focus and be aware or everything else around at the exact same time. Thanks for the reminder to be grateful.
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