What I Know / Don't Know

There are many things I know, but still many things that I may never be able to fully understand.

As I walked into work today, I focused on the full moon. Wearing my glasses I was able to see the fine details in the moon. It’s still very new to me, although the moon has always been there, I can see it in a new way. Through my life, I’ve always know the sun was there, the moon at night, and the stars. It never really hit me what I was looking at until recently in my life. This glowing thing in the sky is far far away from me, and the only knowledge I have of it is built by other people’s observations and research. As far as my senses are concerned, they are just dots in the sky or a big lamp and night light. There are still many things in this world that I haven’t learned with my own senses, but I’ve read about it like different cultures, extreme poverty, the surface of the moon, the weight of gold, underground rivers, an iceberg, the list goes on.

I know how grass is cut, I know how bricks are laid, I know how electricity is run, I know how signs are produced and channel letters hung, I know how brochures and flyers are set up and produced, I know that woodwind instruments produce unique sounds through their shapes, and I know that guitars emit different sounds through different sized strings and compressed lengths, I know how to jump, run, handstand, I know how to create with wood, I know that back flips are possible once fear is surpassed, I know how light reflects off of molecules and bounces back to our eyes, I know the resistance of gravity and just how much force it takes to jump over an obstacle. . . . these things are confirmed by my senses and are fully understood.

I know that wireless technology works, I know that computers work, I know that satellites in orbit exist and make my satellite radio work, I know that cell towers allow me to contact anyone by inputting a code, I know that lasers read CD’s that hold information, . . . but I don’t fully understand it.

I know how to care for myself and my children, I know what makes my wife happy, I know what makes people happy, I know what makes people sad, I know how a divorced heart aches, I know how an addict thinks, I know how it feels to be a father, I know how to sin, I know how to be real, I know how to act like I have it all together, I know myself . . . to an extent, I know only what I can see on the surface of others through my senses . . . but I don’t fully understand people.

I don’t know if there is a spirit world, I don’t know why I do things I don’t want to do, I don’t know if there is a God, I don’t know if there is life outside of earth, I don’t know if asteroids and meteors are real, I don’t know if there are really other planets in our solar system, I don’t know that there are other continents on this Earth . . . these are all things that I’ve never sensed, but I have been taught about them and have even seen these things in pictures and video.

My reality is defined through what I know and what I don’t know. It’s what I don’t know that intrigues me so much, and causes me to look deeper into life. Will I ever know the answer to these questions? Some maybe not, but I do know that if I ignore them, I will be wasting my time. What better purpose is there in life than to pursue what you don’t know? Otherwise you will become stagnant and float through life, living as if you had all the time in the world. But the truth is, we don’t, there is a limit to our lives here on Earth and in the time we exist, we must capture the moment and seek the unknown.

What do you know? Better yet, what don't you know?