Have you ever wanted to un-learn something? To unring the proverbial bell? To turn off the lights and blot all the images from your memory? That impossibility can be heartbreaking, a heavy burden.
I always thought knowledge was a good thing. Growth, maturity, enlightenment are all things after which we are taught to strive—for which we even ought to sacrifice! We pay to go to University and to seminars because it is worth the money, right?
But what do I do when I feel that my knowledge stops me from living in a carefree manner? Or it puts such a desperate longing in me that I struggle with discontent? That little tidbit of information would be worth knowing, because I sure don’t know the answer.
This is a silly comparison, but I think about the movie Men in Black, and how Will Smith’s character had to see the world a whole new way when he learned that aliens not only exits, but multitudes of them live among us. Conversely, at the end of the movie, in order for Tommy Lee Jones’ character to live ‘happily ever after,’ he must be plunged back into ignorance. Is it really bliss? Can we only exist blithely with out eyes closed?
The very idea is offensive to me. The Truth will set us free. Unrest’s root is found in twisted thinking, i.e. lies. Right?
I am confused by this post.
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