Haw did not like the idea of having to run through the Maze again, because he knew he would get lost and have no idea where he would find any Cheese. But he had to laugh at his folly when he saw what his fear was doing to him.
He asked Hem, “Where did we put our running shoes?” It took a long time to find them because they had put everything away when they found their Cheese at Cheese Station C, thinking they wouldn’t be needing them anymore.
As Hem saw his friend getting into his running gear, he said, “You’re not really going out into the Maze again, are you? Why don’t you just wait here with me until they put the Cheese back?”
“Because, you just don’t get it,” Haw said. “I didn’t want to see it either, but now I realize they’re never going to put yesterday’s Cheese back. It’s time to find New Cheese.”
Hem argued, “But what if there is no Cheese out there? Or even if there is, what if you don’t find it?”
“I don’t know,” Haw said. He had asked himself those same questions too many times and felt the fears again that kept him where he was.
He asked himself, “Where am I more likely to find Cheese—here or in the Maze?”
He painted a picture in his mind. He saw himself venturing out into the Maze with a smile on his face.
While this picture surprised him, it made him feel good. He saw himself getting lost now and then in the Maze, but felt confident he would eventually find New Cheese out there and all the good things that came with it. He gathered his courage.
Then he used his imagination to paint the most believable picture he could-with the most realistic details-of him finding and enjoying the taste of New Cheese.
He saw himself eating Swiss cheese with holes in it, bright orange Cheddar and American cheeses, Italian Mozzarella and wonderfully soft French Camembert Cheese, and....
Then he heard Hem say something and realized they were still at Cheese Station C.
Haw said, “Sometimes, Hem, things change and they are never the same again. This looks like one of those times. That’s life! Life moves on. And so should we.”
Haw looked at his emaciated companion and tried to talk sense to him, but Hem’s fear had turned into anger and he wouldn’t listen.
Haw didn’t mean to be rude to his friend, but he had to laugh at how silly they both looked.
As Haw prepared to leave, he started to feel more alive, knowing that he was finally able to laugh at himself, let go and move on.
Haw laughed and announced, “It’s ... Maze ... time!”
Hem didn’t laugh and he didn’t respond.
Haw picked up a small, sharp rock and wrote a serious thought on the wall for Hem to think about. As was his custom, Haw even drew a picture of cheese around it, hoping it would help Hem to smile, lighten up, and go after the New Cheese. But Hem didn’t want to see it.
It read:
If You Do Not
Change,
You Can Become
Extinct.
Then, Haw stuck his head out and peered anxiously into the Maze. He thought about how he’d gotten himself into this cheeseless situation.
He had believed that there may not be any Cheese in the Maze, or he may not find it. Such fearful beliefs were immobilizing and killing him.
Haw smiled. He knew Hem was wondering, “Who moved my cheese?” but Haw was wondering, “Why didn’t I get up and move with the Cheese, sooner?”
As he started out into the Maze, Haw looked back to where he had come from and felt its comfort. He could feel himself being drawn back into familiar territory-even though he hadn’t found Cheese here for some time.
Haw became more anxious and wondered if he really wanted to go out into the Maze. He wrote a saying on the wall ahead of him and stared at it for some time:
What Would You Do
If You Weren’t Afraid?
He thought about it.
He knew sometimes some fear can be good. When you are afraid things are going to get worse if you don’t do something, it can prompt you into action. But it is not good when you are so afraid that it keeps you from doing anything.
He looked to his right, to the part of the Maze where he had never been, and felt the fear.
Then, he took a deep breath, turned right into the Maze, and jogged slowly, into the unknown.
As he tried to find his way, Haw worried, at first, that he might have waited too long in Cheese Station C. He hadn’t had any Cheese for so long that he was now weak. It took him longer and it was more painful than usual to get through the Maze.
He decided that if he ever got the chance again, he would get out of his comfort zone and adapt to change sooner. It would make things easier.
Then, Haw smiled a weak smile as he thought, “Better late than never.”
During the next several days, Haw found a little Cheese here and there, but nothing that lasted very long. He had hoped to find enough Cheese to take some back to Hem and encourage him to come out into the Maze.
But Haw didn’t feel confident enough yet. He had to admit he found it confusing in the Maze. Things seemed to have changed since the last time he was out here.
Just when he thought he was getting ahead, he would get lost in the corridors. It seemed his progress was two steps forward and one step backward. It was a challenge, but he had to admit that being back in the Maze, hunting for Cheese, wasn’t nearly as bad as he feared it might be.
As time went on he began to wonder if it was realistic for him to expect to find New Cheese. He wondered if he had bitten off more than he could chew. Then he laughed, realizing that he had nothing to chew on at that moment.
Whenever he started to get discouraged, he reminded himself that what he was doing, as uncomfortable as it was at the moment, was in reality much better than staying in the Cheeseless situation. He was taking control, rather than simply letting things happen to him.
Then he reminded himself, if Sniff and Scurry could move on, so could he!
Later, as Haw looked back on things, he realized that the Cheese at Cheese Station C had not just disappeared overnight, as he had once believed. The amount of Cheese that had been there toward the end had been getting smaller, and what was left had grown old. It didn’t taste as good.
Mold may even have begun to grow on the Old Cheese, although he hadn’t noticed it. He had to admit however, that if he had wanted to, he probably could have seen what was coming. But he didn’t.
Haw now realized that the change probably would not have taken him by surprise if he had been watching what was happening all along and if he had anticipated change. Maybe that’s what Sniff and Scurry had been doing.
He decided he would stay more alert from now on. He would expect change to happen and look for it. He would trust his basic instincts to sense when change was going to occur and be ready to adapt to it.
He stopped for a rest and wrote on the wall of the Maze:
Smell The Cheese Often
So You Know
When It Is Getting Old
Sometime later, after not finding Cheese for what seemed like a long time, Haw finally came across a huge Cheese Station, which looked promising. When he went inside, however, he was most disappointed to discover that the Cheese Station was empty.
“This empty feeling has happened to me too often,” he thought. He felt like giving up.
Haw was losing his physical strength. He knew he was lost and was afraid he would not survive. He thought about turning around and heading back to Cheese Station C. At least, if he made it back, and Hem was still there, Haw wouldn’t be alone. Then he asked himself the same question again, “What would I do if I weren’t afraid?”
Haw thought he was past his fear, but he was afraid more often than he liked to admit, even to himself. He wasn’t always sure what he was afraid of, but, in his weakened condition, he knew now he was simply fearful of going on alone
. Haw didn’t know it, but he was running behind because he was still weighed down by fearful beliefs.
Haw wondered if Hem had moved on, or if he was still paralyzed by his own fears. Then, Haw remembered the times when he had felt his best in the Maze. It was when he was moving along.
He wrote on the wall, knowing it was as much a reminder to himself as it was a marking for his friend Hem, hopefully, to follow:
Movement In A
New Direction
Helps You Find
New Cheese.
Haw looked down the dark passageway and was aware of his fear. What lay ahead? Was it empty? Or worse, were there dangers lurking? He began to imagine all kinds of frightening things that could happen to him. He was scaring himself to death.
Then he laughed at himself. He realized his fears were making things worse. So he did what he would do if he weren’t afraid. He moved in a new direction.
As he started running down the dark corridor he began to smile. Haw didn’t realize it yet, but he was discovering what nourished his soul. He was letting go and trusting what lay ahead for him, even though he did not know exactly what it was.
To his surprise, Haw started to enjoy himself more and more. “Why do I feel so good?” he wondered. “I don’t have any Cheese and I don’t know where I am going.”
Before long, he knew why he felt good.
He stopped to write again on the wall:
When You Stop
Being Afraid,
You Feel Good!
Haw realized he had been held captive by his own fear. Moving in a new direction had freed him.
Now he felt the cool breeze that was blowing in this part of the Maze and it was refreshing. He took in some deep breaths and felt invigorated by the movement. Once he had gotten past his fear, it turned out to be more enjoyable than he once believed it could be.
Haw hadn’t felt this way for a long time. He had almost forgotten how much fun it was to go for it.
To make things even better, Haw started to paint a picture in his mind again. He saw himself in great realistic detail, sitting in the middle of a pile of all his favorite cheeses-from Cheddar to Brie! He saw himself eating the many cheeses he liked, and he enjoyed what he saw. Then he imagined how much he would enjoy all their great tastes.
The more clearly he saw the image of himself enjoying New Cheese, the more real and believable it became. He could sense that he was going to find it.
He wrote:
Imagining Yourself
Enjoying Your
New Cheese
Leads You To It.
Haw kept thinking about what he could gain instead of what he was losing.
He wondered why he had always thought that a change would lead to something worse. Now he realized that change could lead to something better.
“Why didn’t I see this before?” he asked himself.
Then he raced through the Maze with greater strength and agility. Before long he spotted a Cheese Station and became excited as he noticed little pieces of New Cheese near the entrance.
They were types of Cheese he had never seen before, but they looked great. He tried them and found that they were delicious. He ate most of the New Cheese bits that were available and put a few in his pocket to have later and perhaps share with Hem. He began to regain his strength.
He entered the Cheese Station with great excitement. But, to his dismay, he found it was empty. Someone had already been there and had left only the few bits of New Cheese.
He realized that if he had moved sooner, he would very likely have found a good deal of New Cheese here.
Haw decided to go back and see if Hem was ready to join him.
As he retraced his steps, he stopped and wrote on the wall:
The Quicker You Let Go
Of Old Cheese,
The Sooner You Find
New Cheese.
After a while Haw made his way back to Cheese Station C and found Hem. He offered Hem bits of New Cheese, but was turned down.
Hem appreciated his friend’s gesture but said, “I don’t think I would like New Cheese. It’s not what I’m used to. I want my own Cheese back and I’m not going to change until I get what I want.”
Haw just shook his head in disappointment and reluctantly went back out on his own. As he returned to the farthest point he had reached in the Maze, he missed his friend, but realized he liked what he was discovering. Even before he found what he hoped would be a great supply of New Cheese, if ever, he knew that what made him happy wasn’t just having Cheese.
He was happy when he wasn’t being run by his fear. He liked what he was doing now.
Knowing this, Haw didn’t feel as weak as he did when he stayed in Cheese Station C with no Cheese. Just realizing he was not letting his fear stop him, and knowing that he had taken a new direction, nourished him and gave him strength.
Now he felt that it was just a question of time before he found what he needed. In fact, he sensed he had already found what he was looking for.
He smiled as he realized:
It Is Safer To
Search In The Maze,
Than Remain In A
Cheeseless Situation.
Haw realized again, as he had once before, that what you are afraid of is never as bad as what you imagine. The fear you let build up in your mind is worse than the situation that actually exists.
He’d been so afraid of never finding New Cheese that he didn’t even want to start looking. But since starting his journey, he had found enough Cheese in the corridors to keep him going. Now he looked forward to finding more. Just looking ahead was becoming exciting.
His old thinking had been clouded by his worries and fears. He used to think about not having enough Cheese, or not having it last as long as he wanted. He used to think more about what could go wrong than what could go right.
But that had changed in the days since he had left Cheese Station C.
He used to believe that Cheese should never be moved and that change wasn’t right.
Now he realized it was natural for change to continually occur, whether you expect it or not. Change could surprise you only if you didn’t expect it and weren’t looking for it.
When he realized he had changed his beliefs, he paused to write on the wall:
Old Beliefs
Do Not Lead You
To New Cheese.
Haw hadn’t found any Cheese yet, but as he ran through the Maze, he thought about what he had already learned.
Haw now realized that his new beliefs were encouraging new behaviors. He was behaving differently than when he kept returning to the same cheeseless station.
He knew that when you change what you believe, you change what you do.
You can believe that a change will harm you and resist it. Or you can believe that finding New Cheese will help you and embrace the change.
It all depends on what you choose to believe.
He wrote on the wall:
When You See That
You Can Find And
Enjoy New Cheese,
You Change Course.
Haw knew he would be in better shape now if he had dealt with the change much sooner and left Cheese Station C earlier. He would feel stronger in body and spirit and he could have coped better with the challenge of finding New Cheese. In fact, he probably would have found it by now if he had expected change, rather than wasting time denying that the change had already taken place.
He used his imagination again and saw himself finding and savoring New Cheese. He decided to proceed into the more unknown parts of the Maze, and found little bits of Cheese here and there. Haw began to regain his strength and confidence.
As he thought back on where he had come from, Haw was glad he had written on the wall in many places. He trusted that it would serve as a marked trail for
Hem to follow through the Maze, if he ever chose to leave Cheese Station C.
Haw just hoped he was heading in the right direction. He thought about the possibility that Hem would read The Handwriting On The Wall and find his way.
He wrote on the wall what he had been thinking about for some time:
Noticing
Small Changes Early
Helps You Adapt To
The Bigger Changes
That Are To Come.
By now, Haw had let go of the past and was adapting to the present.
He continued on through the Maze with greater strength and speed. And before long, it happened.
When it seemed like he had been in the Maze forever, his journey—or at least this part of his journey-ended quickly and happily.
Haw proceeded along a corridor that was new to him, rounded a corner, and found New Cheese at Cheese Station N!
When he went inside, he was startled by what he saw. Piled high everywhere was the greatest supply of Cheese he had ever seen. He didn’t recognize all that he saw, as some kinds of Cheese were new to him.
Then he wondered for a moment whether it was real or just his imagination, until he saw his old friends Sniff and Scurry.
Sniff welcomed Haw with a nod of his head, and Scurry waved his paw. Their fat little bellies showed that they had been here for some time.
Haw quickly said his hellos and soon took bites of every one of his favorite Cheeses. He pulled off his shoes, tied the laces together, and hung them around his neck in case he needed them again.
Sniff and Scurry laughed. They nodded their heads in admiration. Then Haw jumped into the New Cheese. When he had eaten his fill, he lifted a piece of fresh Cheese and made a toast. “Hooray for Change!”
As Haw enjoyed the New Cheese, he reflected on what he had learned.
He realized that when he had been afraid to change he had been holding on to the illusion of Old Cheese that was no longer there.
So what was it that made him change? Was it the fear of starving to death? Haw smiled as he thought it certainly helped.
Then he laughed and realized that he had started to change as soon as he had learned to laugh at himself and at what he had been doing wrong. He realized the fastest way to change is to laugh at your own folly—then you can let go and quickly move on.
Who Moved My Cheese Page 3
