The Elusiveness Of Wisdom

In this short informal series I will analyze the so-called “nuggets of wisdom,” or old sayings that are passed on to us from one generation to another.

We, the passive recipients, rarely question these words, if at all. We rush to share them on Facebook and elsewhere but… have we ever stopped and analyzed the words and the possible unwanted meanings/interpretations? Is wisdom a set-in-stone type of deal?

Who invented those “wisdoms”? We have the right to suspect that in most cases the quotes about hard work and how to succeed in life were created by fat scholars who sat on their asses, never worked and just popped out smart words for you and me to follow.

That is why we should scrutinize them carefully and see if they really work in any situation. Not having a steady portable “wisdom” that applies successfully to any environment is like having to make a new umbrella for every rainfall.

Let us start with the popular proverb,

“Love me when I least deserve it, because that's when I really need it.”

How touchy. But how real?

While it is true that we all make mistakes in our lives, and love can help someone changing their evil ways, I am not sure we should share this so passionately. Let us stop and think.

There is a difference between someone who is battling addiction and needs your support and someone who is a serial killer or rapist and shows no remorse.

Would you love a killer just because so many people are against him and he really needs some love? He least deserves it, don’t you think?

How ‘bout a husband who beats you and your children every day? He could use good loving, too.

According to this saying, one can even plan to be a real monster and then throw this “wisdom” right in your face because, “that’s when he really needs love, he is inferior and you are the good person et cetera.”

Ladies and gentlemen, this is a proverb made by a selfish critter, concerned about their needs.

I hope I made my point.

Stay tuned for the next analysis.

Coming up: the oh-so-clichéd " Don't put all your eggs in one basket"