Have A Big Mind

Let’s take a tour in the museum of the mind.

Here on the first floor we have the people with small minds. To your left are the ladies and gentlemen who are possessed of such leisure that they can spend their days watching what their neighbors are doing, and telling everyone who will listen all about it. Their greatest joy is to catch someone doing something they think is bad, cornering another person and whispering their precious secret to them. If you look closely you may see one of your neighbors or friends.

To your right are specimens of people who, while they would never stoop to gossip, enjoy reading about their favorite celebrities. They have found their lives so dull that they feel the need to live vicariously through the lives of the famous. Often these two groups will intermingle, and it can be difficult to differentiate between extreme specimens.

Come along now. We have much to see. We will take this elevator to the second floor of our museum where we will find the men and women who are caught up in the events of the day. Straight ahead of you are the hard working people who maintain the order of the world. Caught up in their day-to-day lives, they have little time for the secrets of the lives of others, and leave the guidance of the events of the world to the people they have been told are knowledgable about such things.

To your right are a few examples of these ‘knowledgable’ people. If you look closely you will see politicians, possibly someone from your home town, but certainly some who you know as famous and infamous national leaders. These are the people who wish to control what events occur, and how people respond to them. Careful. Don’t get too close to them. They have been known to not only bite, but to encourage visitors to attack one another. Others in this group are known as ‘commentators’. They have taken it on themselves to tell the rest of us what events mean. Some people believe this group belongs with those who talk about ideas, but we feel they are more appropriately placed here since the major thrust of their work is manipulation, not communication.

Finally, let us go to the third floor, where we have specimens of people who talk about ideas. You don’t need to be as careful here. Most of our specimens are very peaceful, some so much so that if you don’t look closely you would think they were actually dormant. These are examples of people who get so lost in the world of thought, they can’t make up their minds to do anything. We sometimes have to hand feed them to get them to eat. Others… Excuse me. I’m going to have to ask you all to put on these headphones while I use this small radio to talk to you. All set? Okay. Others have found what they think is the answer to all the problems of the world, and insist that everyone around them listen to them and only to them. As you can well imagine, when several of these specimens are together the sound level gets quite high, while no one really communicates.

Now, unless someone has a question, thank you for coming. Oh, you had a question, sir? Why did everyone look like you? Ma’am, did you notice that everyone looked like the gentleman to your left? No? You thought they had a resemblence to you? Actually, that is one the main things we hope our visitors take away. We have chosen our specimens for their exhibition of characteristics that are common to almost everyone. Our hope is that our visitors will wake up, just a little.

A lady who taught me a lot when I was young, Katies Dukes, used to say that small minds talks about people, medium minds talk about events, and big minds talk about ideas. We all know people who belong to each of these categories. The museum we just toured, as with many museums, had extreme specimens to point up certain characteristics. I’m sure as you walked you could see bits and pieces of yourself on each floor and in each group. I know I did. But that’s okay. If we were perfect we wouldn’t be here. The secret to growth is to wake up enough that you see yourself and your world with some degree of distance. Personal change doesn’t come from focusing on the surface of life, but by learning the ideas that guide how you act and react.

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