Good
Sense Counts
“If
everyone is thinking alike, then somebody isn’t thinking.”
George
S. Patton
I was
thinking about intelligence this morning. About what it means to be an
intelligent person, and what the difference is between intelligence and wisdom.
I grew up in a family of daughters—one academic over-achiever, one middle of
the road grade-maker (that’s me), and one who could not communicate her
thoughts at all. Being the middle child and the only one not physically or mentally
afflicted in some manner, I got off pretty easy. My sister, Jerrie, was the “smart”
one—she made all A’s from the first grade through college; became a statistician
with Union Carbide right out of school, then married and never worked again
outside the home. All that education, all those smarts, went into family and
helping her husband’s business. Then there was me, the middle of the roader—managed
to graduate high school by the skin of my teeth, then found my academic footing
in college, went on to graduate school, and had an independent career. And
Missy, who had a cerebral hemorrhage at birth and didn’t develop physically or
mentally past infancy. She understood much but couldn’t speak. She is the one
who taught the rest of the family what unconditional love and acceptance look
like. So, which of us was intelligent and which was wise and who was merely getting
by?
Whether
we are smart or wise or just getting by, we deserve the same love and respect.
Not everyone is an Einstein and thank God for that. We all have a purpose whether
we know it or not or understand what it is. If you know yours, then follow your
path. If you don’t then do the next thing, the right thing, the true thing, and
you can’t go wrong. Wisdom comes from trusting spirit to guide and having the
good sense to follow.
In
the Spirit,
Jane
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