Unlearning

So well-taught, so full of learning, yet

With judgment blurred and clouded,

How can a man be told and shown the

Right path and still resist and doubt it?

Know you how to tell the colors of a

Sunrise to a blind man, or the sound of

A forest to one that’s deaf? For ages, at

The feet of sages I sat, I met with wise

Men of all creeds, bathed in the light

That from such souls proceeds, and yet

I stumble in darkness, marveling at

Mine own ignorance, and at the world

I built and at its shameful starkness.

O take all my learning and cast it aside,

Make me like a child, resolute, and

In his innocence wild, one that, in his need,

Drops his toys and, not caring for poise,

Into the hands of his Father like a raindrop

Falls. 

Reviews

[Green]

I’ve heard a somewhat similar thought described as “educated beyond their intelligence”. Usually that’s more of an insult though and this felt more like a diminishing returns kind of thing. Sometimes we throw ourselves into one thing so much (like knowing and understanding) that we lose our way.

[Laz K.]

Thanks for taking the time to read and respond. 🙏

[Beren]

This is absolutely have a great message and well written. But why did I felt maybe the writer is a little hard on himself cause he make mistakes? We walk since we were babies but we can still staggering while walking. We went to school for years, but are we all the best students?
But unlearning is a different thing of course, sometimes it’s something chosen, and sometimes not. Good luck on that.

Love the poem, so strong and the message keeps the reader alive. Made me think.

[Lorry]

Ah, to be that child again Laz. Seeing everything with new eyes and learning everything that we need to know by asking questions and trusting the answers given.
Could you even contemplate what a christmas to a kid is like these days?
Imagine seeing a book magically coming to life on a tablet or imagine hearing Alexa answer you for tge first time, while still getting excited over less tech heavy toys like train sets and footballs to chase in the park.
Mums and Dads would become just people, as Alexa becomes the font of all knowledge, but every kid would still know that they are lucky to have the just people mum and dad because they would truly know what love is... After Alexa explains it to them! 😃

[Fabian G. Franklin]

I really enjoyed this write. I believe there is only one source of knowledge, light, truth and love. It's never wrong, never demanding or harsh and never has anything to "prove". It just sits there waiting for us to accept and believe. We can't argue with it or work against it because it easily overpowers our greatest thoughts and feelings with calm certainty. It's like a gem of priceless worth we can carry in our hearts but we lack the ability to share it with others no matter how eloquent our words or how convincing our arguments. It has to share itself. God does His work and we should know that His work is wonderful by simple and natural observation. He is able to make the blind see and the deaf hear but we lack that ability which is why we are admonished not to cast our "pearls before swine" and to be to "wise as serpents but harmless as doves".