Good habits lost and rediscovered

Is it the too-much-to-cope-withness of modern life, I wonder, that has made me lose certain good habits that were second nature to me when I was younger? I'm thinking of a couple of ones that I'm trying to re-establish.

First of all, there's good posture. Of all the physical things that impact our well being and health as we grow older, I'd say good posture is one of the most important. My grandmother kept hers all her life, and she was pretty healthy until her death at the age of 93. She walked and sat upright and looked (and was) all the better for it.

When I was still at school in South Africa, I spent a couple of years in high school before I left for Engand. The Anglican sisters had a simple system of reward, a badge for good posture. It was a small enamelled metal button, blue with a gold edge. I remember wearing it  with pride, pinned onto my blue flowered cotton uniform dress. Of course, in those days, we never dreamed of wearing jewellery to school.

All I'd needed to do was to remind myself every now and then to adjust my shoulders. And that's what I'm trying to do now, especially as sitting at the computer makes me inclined to slump. I know that's not good for my internal organs.

The second thing I'm trying to reinstate is the habit of giving my hair a good brushing. Those hundred strokes we used to do every night when we were young has long been a thing of the past. I suspect that's generally the case. But I'd like to keep my hair from thinning (as much as that's possible) and the scalp stimulation helps. Besides, it feels good!

It seems a pity to me that we can lose good habits, and yet those bad ones cling so determinedly. Perhaps the golden key to reinstating the good ones and losing the bad is simply to keep reminding oneself. And trying again.