About nature vs nurture (Tabula rasa)

Someone came back to my desk yesterday and asked if I thought heartless people were born that way or if they were taught it. Such a strange question for the middle of the day, I can only assume that she had to deal with an annoying client or something. I sat for a second and thought about it. Thought of all the 'heartless' people I've known or know of...and damn if I couldn't give the Libra answer. Both. Or just one.

I take the boy's bio for my first example. He had talked about his childhood, and his dad. Not the happiest of childhoods I guess. Wasn't horrid, but wasn't a Leave it to Beaver example either. But his mom was great. Somewhere along the way though...idk. I mean, I remember stories people would tell me about him and I couldn't believe it. Then, lucky me, I got to see it. Later on, I got to see how cruel he could be to his own mother too. Part of me is sure that the heartlessness was in him all along, but circumstances brought it out.

I think we all have a bit of heartlessness in us, its how we are treated and view the world which makes us act on it. I only say that because I know I, myself, have had some pretty heartless thoughts...but, just couldn't see myself acting on them.

I don't really know many heartless people...I try to avoid them after all. lol Yet, again, when I hear people talk about that one person they know who is just, well, a complete shit...its amazing what stories you can hear about what happened to that person. How they used to be so nice...and then bam, crap happened and it all went away.

Of course, you also have all those people who are just born mean. You see them hurting animals or just..well they are scary as kids. You can see it in them. (This could also start to work as a nurture too, because if we see them as scary early on, won't they be treated as scary and then, by default and learning, become the scary/heartless person we thought they would?)

So when I answered her, I told her both, just depends. It would be nice if it could be narrowed to one thing though huh?
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So I tried a new method tonight...kind of a stream of consciousness. I actually liked it...but wasn't up for sharing...so I started another one...and yeah, not sharing that one either. lol Think that will be the rub of that kind of poem, I won't know where it wants to go, and it might take me places I don't want to be. lol Oh well, at least I managed something else. I am surprised I could because I was having a really hard time writing tonight. :( boo


The air was heavy and unwelcoming
No longer sure of the plan to continue
Sitting down, ignoring it all
Enter into a world of your own
Slowly the air shifts
New waves of cool begin to
Replace the thick heavy ones
So much easier to relax
So much easier to not get anything done.