There’re a couple lines from the song “Forces of Nature,” by hip hop group Tragic Allies’ members Code Nine and Purpose, from their album Below Sumerian Skies (2016), which stand out to me. First, Code Nine states, “Adopted by the pavement, abandoned by these book smarts.”
This line reflects my mindset during adolescence. From that period of my life, featured in the photo above, I illogically and unreasonably (collectively “irrationally”) subscribed to the notion that there were forces of nature which compelled me to behave in an unproductive manner.
For instance, I unfavorably told my older sister, after returning to live in a children’s home when told to leave the family that had taken me in, “I’m a product of my environment.” This was in regard to my chosen behavior of spending time with gang members rather than reading books.
In actuality, my statement was representative of rationalization—the actions of attempting to explain or justify behavior or an attitude with logical reasons, even if these proposals aren’t appropriate. Noteworthy, rationalization isn’t the same thing as rational thinking.
That which is rational comports with both logic and reason. Unlike attempts to excuse inappropriate behavior, represented by the stinking thinking of rationalization from my youth, I now strive to think rationally when practicing rational emotive behavior therapy (REBT).
Following the first line from “Forces of Nature,” Code Nine secondly states, “These are forces of nature. Mind in [an] inferno of fire, heart of a glacier.” With use of unhelpful beliefs from adolescence, I was sometimes referred to as a “hothead”—a person who is impetuous or who easily becomes angry and violent.
Similarly, as was stated in a blogpost entitled Peering Behind the Proverbial Curtain of Mental Health, “I think back to the times in my life when I struggled with symptoms of mental illness. One of my many nicknames is Tin Man, because I was once said not to have a heart when interacting with others.”
I understand what it is to have a mind in an inferno of fire and the heart of a glacier (cold and isolated). Similar to the first referenced line of “Forces of Nature,” I unaccommodatingly believed that I wasn’t personally responsible or accountable for my unpleasant disposition.
What I didn’t know in my youth was that no unforeseen forces of nature were to blame for how I thought, what I felt, or how I behaved. Regarding this assertion, the late psychologist who developed REBT, Albert Ellis, promoted along with a coauthor in Creative Marriage (page 56):
[T]he specific concept of problem solving itself—or the idea that human beings, usually, are able to control their so-called feelings and emotions and to regulate their own lives, instead of being driven by organic, unconscious, social, or cosmic forces.
Although I lived in chaotic environments during my youth, I wasn’t the product of my surroundings. Likewise, there were no identifiable biological, sub-psychological, societal, or celestial forces which caused me to feel (emotion and sensation) or behave in a particular way.
Herein, I’m not completely rejecting a binary notion regarding the influential nature and nurture aspects of an individual’s life. Rather, I’m inviting the reader to consider a plausible third category which is worth consideration.
Using the ABC model of REBT, I propose that when undesirable Activating events occur and a person uses irrational Beliefs about the situation, it’s one’s unhelpful assumptions and not the circumstance itself that causes unpleasant Consequences (i.e., feelings and behaviors).
Personally, it’s disempowering to maintain that people simply can’t help but to pursue criminal activity rather than cultivating their level of knowledge, wisdom, and understanding, or to merely succumb to being hotheaded or cold-hearted instead of improving their quality of life.
Rather than fostering victimhood narratives related to unforeseen forces of nature which supposedly control people, REBT uses a humanistic approach to mental, emotional, and behavioral health by empowering individuals to take charge of their own lives. Of this, Ellis and his coauthor stated (page 56):
[O]ne of the main and most pernicious of these notions is the belief that most human unhappiness is caused or forced on one by outside people and events, or by inner drives that are uncontrollable, and that one has virtually no control over one’s emotions and cannot help feeling badly on many occasions.
There were no identifiable forces of nature puppeteering me in my youth. Likewise, I doubt there are malevolent powers causing you to feel or behave as you do. Although this declaration cuts against the grain within contemporary culture, I propose it nonetheless.
Still, I’m mindful of the prospective reader who willfully refuses to let go of a victimhood claim. “Things happen which are out of my control and it’s irresponsible to suggest that events such as natural disasters, like actual fires and not just hotheadedness, aren’t impactful,” one may retort.
To this, I encourage the reader who is leery of my proposal to reflect upon the photo of this blogpost. In it, I was squatting in front of a burnt down tree within the woods.
It had apparently been stuck by lightning, an uncompromising force of nature. Thus, herein, I’m not denying the impact of undesirable events.
Instead, I propose that the tree that was split and ultimately killed by a massive electrical discharge reflects the impermanent and uncertain nature of life. Truly, all things shall pass – this moment, the one prior, and the one to follow, along with everything encompassed within time.
Unless you’re lying on a bed of leaves in a forest and being consumed by the decomposing forces of nature, there’s still time to take control over your life. Yes, you will inescapably die one day. Unless that moment is today, then there’s still time.
Of course, as a self-determined and autonomous individual who’s inevitably flawed, you’re free to disturb yourself with unproductive beliefs about the forces of nature. Countless people choose to upset themselves in such a manner.
As for me, I annulled an adoption from the pavement mentioned in “Forces of Nature” and now seek book smarts, referenced by Code Nine, to improve my life. If you, too, would like to take control of your life in a similar way, I’m here to help.
If you’re looking for a provider who works to help you understand how thinking impacts physical, mental, emotional, and behavioral elements of your life, I invite you to reach out today by using the contact widget on my website.
As the world’s foremost hip hop-influenced REBT psychotherapist, I’m pleased to help people with an assortment of issues from anger (hostility, rage, and aggression) to relational issues, adjustment matters, trauma experience, justice involvement, attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder, anxiety and depression, and other mood or personality-related matters.
At Hollings Therapy, LLC, serving all of Texas, I aim to treat clients with dignity and respect while offering a multi-lensed approach to the practice of psychotherapy and life coaching. My mission includes: Prioritizing the cognitive and emotive needs of clients, an overall reduction in client suffering, and supporting sustainable growth for the clients I serve. Rather than simply helping you to feel better, I want to help you get better!
Deric Hollings, LPC, LCSW
References:
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BandCamp. (n.d.). Below Sumerian Skies. Retrieved from https://belowsystem.bandcamp.com/album/below-sumerian-skies
Cairdeas [@RealCodeNine]. (n.d.). Connoiseur. X. Retrieved from https://x.com/realcodenine?lang=en
Code Nine & Purpose – Topic. (2019, August 15). Forces of Nature [Video]. YouTube. Retrieved from https://youtu.be/D_AtMr4PqDI?si=eiSsuQ8lWrvuqO0-
Discogs. (n.d.). Tragic Allies. Retrieved from https://www.discogs.com/artist/1398531-Tragic-Allies
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Hollings, D. (2024, September 27). My attitude. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/my-attitude
Hollings, D. (2023, September 3). On feelings. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/on-feelings
Hollings, D. (2023, June 20). Peering behind the proverbial curtain of mental health. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/ peering-behind-the-proverbial-curtain-of-mental-health
Hollings, D. (2022, November 7). Personal ownership. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/personal-ownership
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Hollings, D. (2022, November 1). Self-disturbance. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/self-disturbance
Hollings, D. (2024, April 21). Sensation. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/sensation
Hollings, D. (2024, February 27). Suffering, struggling, and battling vs. experiencing. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/suffering-struggling-and-battling-vs-experiencing
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Hollings, D. (2022, November 25). Victimhood. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/victimhood
Hollings, D. (2022, August 8). Was Freud right? Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/was-freud-right
Hollings, D. (2023, September 22). You’re gonna die someday. Hollings Therapy, LLC. Retrieved from https://www.hollingstherapy.com/post/you-re-gonna-die-someday
Purpose [@Tragic_Purpose]. (n.d.). Purpose of Tragic Allies. X. Retrieved from https://x.com/tragic_purpose?lang=en
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