On being a know-it-all

I recently signed up for a Social Psychology course on Coursera. Of all the concepts it discusses, I am particularly drawn towards a certain concept named ‘The Hindsight Bias‘. It is also interestingly called ‘I knew-it-all-along effect’. A piece of reading for the course quoted an example from a Sherlock Holmes story, “It is easy to be wise after the event”. That, is hindsight bias.

How often we’ve felt, after hearing of something, – a piece of information or the result of a research – that we had known it all along? It would be obvious, but we wouldn’t have been able to guess before being informed. It happens so often that we hardly realize that it is a condition that has been technically named and studied in the field of Social Psychology.

That’s the beauty of the subject, it has a sane explanation to even the most common occurrences that we dismiss carelessly.

This particular condition is something that I have experienced many times, but I didn’t know that it was just a common happening and that it is totally normal for us to assume that we are all know-it-alls.

Fire and Ice

Now a days, I often catch myself wishing that the world had ended in December 2012.

That reminds me of a poem of Robert Frost that I like, Fire and Ice. It was love at first sight. It was helpful that the first sight was during the time everyone in school was so feverishly worried about the world’s end.

The poem brought a smile on my lips, what a thought! Fire and ice, two destructive forces compared to two other similarly destructive forces, desire and hate. It seemed like a perfect combination. It was so obvious.

We don’t need another Tsunami or an earthquake to destroy us. Those are just external causes. We have stronger and more dangerous forces within us that have the power to vanquish us. And, we don’t realize it. We are only worried about Natural factors.

Sometimes it sounds so unlikely that desire or hate towards something could end up perilous, but reflection would reveal the truthfulness of those words.

We don’t need to worry about what Nature would do to us, rather, what should be a matter of our concern is what we could do to the only home we have. We could and would destroy ourselves, our loved ones and our generations by our self-centeredness. That is when the world really dies.

This poem changed my view on the world’s existence.

Fire and Ice

Some say the world will end in fire,
Some say in ice.
From what I’ve tasted of desire
I hold with those who favor fire.
But if it had to perish twice,
I think I know enough of hate
To say that for destruction ice
Is also great
And would suffice.

~Robert Frost

Of Fantasies and Simplicity

When I tell people that I like a certain fantasy novel, they look at me like I’m an intolerable kid. ‘Fantasy books as those, are school kids material; older people shouldn’t read those books. They are childish and off reality’. This is the common attitude people have.

I have a different view of fantasy tales. Apart from being dreamy, fantasies are artfully narrated. It is that particular style of narrative that appeals to everyone. They don’t complicate things. Even the most complex and tough thoughts are conveyed easily so that even kids can understand. That is not childish; that is the toughest thing to do for a writer. To explain worldly philosophy in simple words is something that everyone should learn to do. Simplicity is what everyone desires, even if they claim otherwise.

So what’s wrong with reading fantasies that spell simplicity? Some of the best-selling fantasy novels have life time lessons that thick-bound books can never teach. I say it’s never too late to read fantasies.

Life and Death

Yesterday dawned bright.

It was Nelson Mandela’s 95th birth anniversary. The entire world celebrated his birthday while he was in hospital, making a speedy recovery. It was good news. He is an icon of hope and an inspiration to me and a lot of other youngsters.

Who wouldn’t appreciate and admire a man who refused six offers of freedom from prison life, for the good of his fellow country men? Thirty seven years in a 2m *2.5m cell and hard work in a lime quarry, no wonder the whole world looks up to him!

I once came across a famous quote from his autobiography, ‘Long Walk to Freedom’,

“In South Africa, it is hard for a man to ignore the needs of the people, even at the expense of his own family”.

(Read the whole chapter here)

This was something that moved me a lot. Those words weren’t merely a combination of letters; it was his life, and to take it all and still rebel! Just the mention of his name brings a fond smile on many faces. That’s how much change he has inflicted in us all. I witnessed how much people appreciated him when he made his public appearance in the closing ceremony of the FIFA World Cup held in South Africa back in 2010.

Nelson Mandela

Musing on this, I spend the rest of yesterday, until I heard a bad news. Vaali, the great Tamil poet and lyricist died at the age of 81. The news came as an absolute shock. He was the only poet to have penned lyrics for four generations of actors. Over 15000 great songs he wrote and movies in which he worked are yet to be released.

His death struck me unlike any other deaths. I never realized how much I appreciated him until I heard that he had stopped breathing. I had never thought of a poet like him growing old; I always felt like he would be around forever, penning introduction songs for actors yet to arrive.

In everyone’s personal favourite songs, (whatever the genre, situation and period) will be a majority of Vaali’s words. We may not realize it, but it is so. That was his specialty.

Vaali_1000

It indeed ended a sad day.

Tuesdays with Morrie

“So many people walk around with a meaningless life. They seem half-asleep, even when they think they’re busy doing things they think are important. This is because they are chasing the wrong things. The way you get meaning into your life is to devote yourself to loving others, devote yourself to your community around you, and devote yourself to creating something that gives you purpose and meaning.”

A long time ago, I just happened to come across a movie titled, ‘Tuesdays with Morrie’. The title seemed interesting and so I decided to watch it. I should say I was not disappointed at all. The entire movie was filled with such serenity that simple words cannot express.

When I learned that the movie was adopted from a book, I made it my priority to read that book. After a long time I finished reading the book on a train journey. It left me with an inner peace that I find difficult to discern.

About the book – it’s based on a true incident in the author’s life. It’s about the author, Mitch Albom, who, after hearing about his favourite professor’s fatal illness, visits his professor sixteen years after his graduation.

After the first visit, Mitch is convinced that he wants to visit the dying professor every week. Being Tuesday people – as his professor called it – Mitch visits his professor Morrie, every Tuesday with a handful of food parcels.

Each Tuesday, Mitch learns something new about living a meaningful life. Morrie speaks of his love for living. He helps Mitch understand the purpose of life and wants his words to educate more people who need a loving voice of comfort. Morrie is one who does not give in to the society that chases happiness without realizing that it could be found within. He has built himself a sub-society where no one is inferior and everyone is on the lookout for the other. Morrie and Mitch talk about everything that seems to torment the present generation and Morrie always has something valuable to offer.

The author has done a great job of describing Morrie’s decreasing health condition. The style in which the author has narrated the story touches every heart. You can’t help but appreciate Morrie and wish you had had a teacher like that. That’s where Mitch Albom succeeds.