Feb 07 2024 5 mins
I remember Ted Kennedy’s shaky voice, during a eulogy for his brother Robert, as he quoted George Bernard Shaw who said, “Some men see things as they are and ask why. Others dream things that never were and ask why not.” I’m not sure Ted OR Robert were capable of anything more than why and why not questions. I hope so. But I won’t know until I leave this world. And maybe then it won’t matter. But I DO know that KNOWING why is awesome.
Because knowing why melts away a lot of the wondering in the world.
And the biggest why question is the one about our existence. Why are we here? If you don’t KNOW the answer to that, you’re liable to come up with all sorts of foolish stuff. Not the least of which (in fact, maybe the most of which) is how everything came from nothing.
Foolishness. And for one main human reason. And one main supernatural reason.
The human reason is: there’s NO such thing as nothing.
The supernatural reason: something from nothing isn’t natural. It doesn’t happen. So, if it DID happen, it would have to be supernatural. Above that which is natural. Outside of all that is natural. Beyond everything that is natural.
Supernatural!
Uh-oh. That takes us toward a supernatural Designer. Because all of creation is FULL of design. And you can’t logically look at design and say it happened all by itself. You know, automatically, it had a designer. And this highly complex world, solar system, galaxy, and universe we live in is held together by design. Not accidentally.
I pondered that sort of thing, way back in 1987, when I still hadn’t found the love of my life. And I wrote a poem (because, yeah, that’s what real thinking men do) about my questions. A lot of why questions. But I ended the poem with an acknowledgment of my ability to KNOW even when I didn’t have an answer. And here’s how it went/goes…
Knowing Why
I pause; I wonder,
And see myself through a magnifying glass.
l ask a question,
And give myself a test that I may never pass.
I yearn for freedom;
I don’t belong in a complicated life.
My needs are simple;
A mountain home and perhaps a loving wife.
So why can’t I make this happen?
Why don’t my dreams come true?
Why is the picture always fading?
And why can’t I change my view?
Why don’t things change no matter how I try?
And why do I constantly ask myself why?
I sit. l listen,
And try to hear all the music in my head.
A song; a feeling.
I need someone to understand what I’ve said.
When I’m being optimistic
I know I’ll be fine.
Asking why is realistic;
Knowing why, divine.
© 1987 (August 26)
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