Ahmad Al Charif

I once read that if u ate 10 spiders everyday, for 10 days, u develop some spider-like sense, aka u will start to become Spiderman. That of course is a scientific impossibility, and consequently most definitely not true, right?

Well my 7 year old brother begs to differ. 110 spiders down the road, he started

getting spidey senses, ones that he thought actually work! It’s funny, because they actually do! Now, equipped with his new superpower, Hassan has not been disciplined by my father for nearly a week. Which is again, a scientific impossibility. Given my dad’s temper, and Hassan’s nature of being prone to getting in trouble.

Its funny how the way we perceive things, shape who we are as people. Our entire system (character, persona, feelings, sense of good/bad) is built upon this perception. Growing up, i have heard many old sayings stating that people never change, that a character is something u take with u to your grave, but that is simply not true. Change your perception, and it changes who you are completely. For example Hassan now perceives himself as a superhero, who does good. Subsequently he stops all behavior that requires discipline, which results in him changing drastically and finding new hobbies and friends, and doing different things, eventually changing him into a different person. Easy? No. The older we get, the more difficult we make it on ourselves to change our perception. We become stuck.

I had a friend called Larry. Who thought doing coke was “Super Cool”. He started doing. Coke at the age of 17, and continued to do so despite everyone’s sincere efforts. All arguments failed to change his mind, because he did not see it as a bad thing. Until one time, Larry’s best friend Jim overdosed, and started foaming in the mouth, and died painfully and horribly right in front of his eyes. His perception then suddenly completely changed, and he stopped using immediately. Larry is now a software developer, making 120,000 USD a year, plus bonuses and benefits. He is married to a very beautiful wife who loves him unconditionally. He could not ask for more. It was not easy, mind you. But most definitely doable.

There is no need for another person to die, for you to change your perception. I know we are not 7 anymore, and it is a bit more difficult. But everything, is most probably not what it seems to be. Allow yourself to question. To change your perception every now and then. Who knows? Maybe we could all eventually all develop spider senses…