Week 15: What stupid question have you heard someone ask, or have you asked yourself?
My gut reaction to this question is the age-old saying "there is no such thing as a stupid question." To some degree, I do believe this. I think society has definitely found itself in a dangerous age where quick skim news sources, and google searches make us all "experts" in things we don't know much about. It is hard to admit when we don't know something, and perhaps even harder to confess if we thought we did and later find we are wrong. I know I am part of the problem. I would much rather contribute an opinion on a matter than an "I don't know."
For example, before writing each week I mull over the questions relentlessly. Always wanting to have the next ground-breaking response to whatever topic I am writing on. I expect to spend a few hours "researching" topics, and miraculously produce a response that will change lives! I even googled "stupid questions people ask" before beginning this response. As silly as that is, the answers I found are even more entertaining:
Perhaps there are some 'stupid' questions.
Nevertheless, what I feel more eager to address, is why we all feel the need to be experts. What is so threatening about being uninformed?
Has anyone else ever experienced the feeling of being in a room where a conversation starts that is way over your head? Anxiety sets in as you listen and realize that somehow everyone around you knows what they are talking about and you are completely lost. Personally, when I find myself in these situations, a downward spiral usually follows. My inner dialog goes something like "what are they talking about? Why do I not know all of these things? They are so much smarter than me. I do not read enough/watch the news enough/follow social media enough. Has anyone noticed I have not said anything? They totally think I am just a dumb housewife. I need to say something!" and so on and so forth...
I confess I have excused myself to go to the bathroom in the most dire of circumstances so that I can google the topic at hand and return with a contribution. Yes, this is sad, but oh so true. I simply cannot admit that I am lost, for fear of what that says about me.
I don't have a neat or clean way to sum this one up, and I am beginning to think that is, perhaps, exactly the point. Sometimes we just don't know everything, and that is okay.
I suppose my 'conclusion' is that there is no such thing as a stupid question, but rather what is 'stupid' is the unwillingness to ask in the first place.