The How and Why of It All

There is an old saying that goes to the effect of: "We get too soon old and too late smart". And there is much to be said about that in the area of judgment and discernment. But just possibly the opposite is true. A youngster is constantly asking how and why. Why do we stop doing that as we get older? Just assume there is a middle aged man who has a 4 year old son. We use a middle aged man as the father rather than a younger man more typically associated with a 4 year old son. We do that because a middle aged man is supposed to be a little wiser than a younger man. At least let us hope so. Good judgment is the result of experience, the problem is that experience often comes from the exercise of bad judgment. And too often those mistakes are within the realm of raising a child. But perhaps that is how it should be.

Back to the 4 year old. A common saying that tries to be a fact by repetition is that a 4 year old asks 437 questions a day. (just call that a myth) But the number is probably more than half that at least. Calculating it out it comes to too many questions a minute to be believable. Until that is that you hear a child ask "why" ten times in one minute. Seriously I have sat at the computer showing pictures of snakes and so was able to time it and with a pointing finger at pictures it can be done. You must understand that it is asked without really wanting a full answer.

What does that have to do with this hub? Read on.

How does that light switch work?

Why does my tap water stink?

How does your body make a fart?

Why can or can't I remember dreams?

How come some planets look just like stars?

Why is there hail?

How are blimps held up in the sky?

Why do cars get louder when they accelerate?

How do worms see?

Why do birds flock together?

How do homeless people shower?

Why do some folks lie?

How do you learn to hate?

Why are there religions?

How does a stove really work?

Why are clouds white instead of blue?

Some are deep questions and some are quite simple but I would bet a dollar on your dime you do not know the answer to all of the above. And yet somehow and someway we stop asking the questions. We just know that if we pay the electric bill the light will come on when we flip the switch and that the stove will cook our food if we turn it on. We know that blimps have some sort of gas in them and that clouds are vaporous and water is wet. But shouldn't we either know more or at least ask.

And what of the deep questions, do we still seek answers or are we too busy with the day to day rigors of life like "what does my boss think of me". (although that may be deep indeed;-)

So we come to ask to great questions "why did I stop asking questions?" and "How do I begin again?" Or perhaps you are like many a reader and writer and you do ask the questions. Or maybe you just do not care. At least we can ask "why have so many people stopped asking questions?"

The boy asks questions and the man is raising the boy. The boy asks "why the stone falls to the dirt?" The man answers of course - gravity. The boy asks "what is gravity?" The man the man responds that it is what makes the stone fall to the earth. Of course this is not good enough. So the boy asks "why does gravity make the stone fall to the dirt?" And so a lengthy explanation ensues. The boy being 4 seems mildly interesting. It seems to have gone over the boys head. Then over the course of the day, the boy runs to the father with a feather. And of course asks "why does the feather not fall like the stone?" Later the boy asks about "how come that airplane does not fall to the dirt" and then "How do birds fly?"

The man is raising the child. And so each question deserves a real answer. It is brutally times taking. And it drives the man crazy at times, but he patiently answers and researches to get more complete answers and he reads them to the boy. And now here is the middle aged man asking himself a serious question "when did I stop asking questions?" When did the cares of the world create in him an age where enlightenment stopped being a priority?

This article is written in a space designed for writers. And it would appear that writers of all people do not simply stop asking the questions. There is in them a quest for answers to questions from how to bake to why is there religion. And it is with great pleasure that we strive to find the answers. But we cannot find ourselves in the same niche that we may find is best for our writing. We must never "niche" ourselves into one area in which question. To be whole people we must diversify our thirst for understanding. And we must stay fresh in the questions of "how" and "why".

Let us end with and answer to a question that is outside the normalcy of answers. Why does the rain fall to earth? The easy answer is gravity. The real answer is: To nourish the earth and make things grow so that we may enjoy the earths bounty and live well.

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