Learning Journal 3

While I was researching obesity in Tonga this week I found out that a lot of people are obese. Not only are they obese but the bigger the better. If you are skinny you are looked down upon. A lot of obese people don't like being obese but they don't want to change. They said it is because that is how it is done and has always been done so that is how it will always be done. It is the Tongan way. It made me really think about my own life and if I do things just because that is how I have always done it. I realized that I used to do the same things over and over again because that is how I always did things. Now I don't. I am not satisfied with always doing things how I've always done them. I have wanted to change things and do things better. An example of this is last semester. At the beginning I decided to make a change and try things differently. It was hard but I did change and life has been a lot better. With this experience in mind I think back to my earlier thought about always doing things the same because that is how you've always done it. I think it all boils down to change. Changing something about yourself is hard work. It is much easier to do the same things the same way every time. Tongans are obese and want to change but are more comfortable with doing things how they have always done. This leads me to a new question. Are Tongans too comfortable being obese to change their habits or is it truly the Tongan way?