The thing about wisdom is that it’s filled with contradictions.
Look before you leap sounds good, but so does He who hesitates is lost.
Out of sight, out of mind? True. Absence makes the heart grow stronger? Also true.
This is even more apparent in the eternal argument over knowledge versus ignorance: “The unexamined life is not worth living,” said Socrates. “Ignorance is bliss,” countered Thomas Gray.
Even the Bible seems unclear when it comes to this subject. For instance, Solomon wrote in the first chapter of Ecclesiastes that “…with much wisdom comes much sorrow; the more knowledge, the more grief.” But just six chapters later he also says, “…the advantage of knowledge is this: that wisdom preserves the life of its possessor.”
Which brings us to this week’s offering from Dr. Gregory Stock’s The Book of Questions. Think hard on this one, and remember that honesty’s always the best policy. Feel free to leave your opinion in the comments, okay? Okay:
Would you rather be happy yet slow-witted and unimaginative or unhappy yet bright and creative? For example, would you rather live the life of a brilliant yet tortured artist such as Vincent van Gogh, or that of a happy but carefree soul who is a bit simple-minded?
