Is My Thinking True or False?

It is important to tell oneself the truth. Believing something for a period of time only to discover that it is false can be quite embarassing or maddening. Everyone has had that experience at least a few times. Children are initially gullible. They believe almost anything an adult says is the absolute truth. As they grow older, children begin to question the validity of some ideas postulated by the adults in their lives. This questioning can be a risky and dangerous business if the adults are fundamentalistic in their approach to their truth. Children, especially adolescents, arriving at a different truth can be considered rebellious or turning against family values. Harsh punishment often results with this change. What one thinks is true, whether about oneself, others, nature, circumstances, religion or politics is important and is either true or false. A good question might be, "is my thinking about (fill in the blank) true or false?"

The Data Gatherers

What you see is not necessarily what you are seeing. The data gathering senses are not perfect in their job. The older we get the more we understand that fact. The aging process can take a toll on the senses; we may not hear as good or see as well. Our smeller and our taster may even begin to let us down. Research has shown that eye witness testimony is not always accurate. A group of people are shown a car accident. After the viewing they are asked to discribe what they saw. No two people saw exactly the same thing. In fact, some of the "eye witnesses" seemed to hardly see the accident at all.

The data gatherers, the senses, are a critical element in the living process. An event occurs and we know that it happened because our senses bring in the sights, smells, tastes, sounds and textures of the situation. The brain begins to process the data, to interpret it and make assignments with regard to meanings. The event is simply that, an event. It has no power, no meaning, no particular effect until the brain swings into motion with the thinking process. Once the data is calculated, thinking is everything.