I’d be a whole lot smarter if I didn’t have to think

Wisdom can be a strange bedfellow. To be wise is not simply to be full of information. It is knowing what that information means, how to piece it together so that the vast quantity of our disparate knowings can shed light on an obscure situation. There is more; genius is not simply limited to facts, figures and how to use them together; it is knowing our strengths and weakness; having a good grasp of our limits and our possibilities; knowing what we do, and what we don’t, know. I’d be a smarter person if I didn’t have to think. If there was some way that the right information would simply present itself at the right time, I would never make the wrong decision again. There is nothing worse than the feeling of helplessness when presented with a challenge that is new and seemingly beyond our grasp. It would be wonderful if there were a set of instructions or a firm voice guiding us along as yet unexplored highways and byways.

I sit weighing options, trying different phrases, thinking deep thoughts about what I am trying to say. It feels like time wasted. Why can’t I just know what I’m going to write about being a smarter person and not have to ponder each word at length? Yet without the arduous process of thinking and reflecting and pondering no words at all would appear on these pages. The very ability to think is in itself a sign of wisdom. To act without thinking is not necessarily a sign that one is smart. It might simply be a reflex reaction that avoids the brain altogether. Our bodies are pre-programmed to behave in certain ways according to diverse stimulus. We breathe without giving it much thought but somehow, I don’t think that breathing without thinking about it is a sign of our genius.

To deny our personal wisdom is to deny personal responsibility. I am not smart enough to distinguish between right and wrong; I do not understand what you are saying; it’s beyond me who they do that. It is also a denial of our personal genius, of the miracle that each one of us is. We all have some form of wisdom, smarts that help us deal with the world around us, brains that guide us through life and help us help others. At the very least we are smart enough to know what we do know, and what we don’t. At the very best, we can let our curiosity open doors to knew knowledge and deeper wisdom. The more we think, the more we use our wits and wisdom, the smarter we are. You might even say: “I think, therefore I am…

…wise.”