A child ... is an original ...

I have heard it said, many times, that there is 'nothing new' under the sun, that everything that is said or thought of is merely an extrapolation, extension, or interpretation of what has been said or thought of before.

Phooey!!

When my daughter was very little, she once asked me, "Mommy, do you know why God made clouds?" "No," I said, very interested in what her answer might be, "Why did He?"

"Because He needed a place to walk," she said, very sure of her answer.


A child sees things purely, with no preconceptions or other influences to 'color' his perceptions, yet we are unwilling to rely on his testimony in court.

There was a wonderful movie, released in 1985, called "Witness", which is listed among my all-time favorites under "Thrillers". The story revolves around an 8-year-old Amish boy who witnesses a murder. (There's a lot more to this story, of course, but -- for purposes of this post -- I will not go into it.)


Earlier this evening, while working word puzzles and listening to the Astros game (They won, hooray!), I came across this solution to a "Quotagram".

The eye sees only what the mind is prepared to comprehend.

I haven't the vaguest idea who the author of this quote might be, and, to tell you the truth, I don't care.


The child's eye sees everything! The adult's eye is colored by previous experiences, background, etc., and -- in my view -- is extremely unreliable. [A few months ago, I described an incident where I was asked my opinion on what had happened.]

How many of you have seen or been personally involved in experiments where something unusual happens (staged) and then questions are asked about the incident? I have not been personally involved, but I know that the answers go all over the place! Very few seem to have actually 'seen' what happened.


SO, when you read my posts I hope you will keep in mind that my views are extremely colored by many years of personal experiences, the vast majority of which you were not a part. I guess what I'm trying to say is one of the reasons some of my posts are so lengthy is that I'm trying to describe where I'm coming from.

Or, maybe I'm just a 'wordaholic'? Whichever. I'm very glad to have all of you as readers and invite your comments, as always.


PS. I was an 'original', at one time, but that was many years ago!