Defining Moments

  Clearly there are those moments everyone in a period of time can easily recall; some phrases speak of an entirety, such as “frankly my dear I don’t give a damn”.  Anyone remotely familiar with film will instantly know that’s from Gone with the Wind, and with that film, an era of information that revolves around the making of it.  Some phrases become so common that we would think they had always been with us.  Only when they fad away and then resurface years later are we made aware of their impact.  Things like “where’s the beef”  I mean seriously, if you don’t know what that means then it’s pointless to go into detail about how it came about.  As my father use to tell me,

   “Son, if you have to explain a joke…it’s no joke.”  

  One of my all time favorite facets of jokes is the quality of irony.  The kind that submits to this definition: of being incongruity between the actual results of a sequence of events and the expected result. 

  I like the unexpected, even if it puts me in an awkward position.  But there is a tale I heard of that makes any personal example pale in comparison and it goes like this: General John Sedgwick, Union commander in the American Civil War at the Battle of Spotsylvania Courthouse when cautioned of Rebel snipers in the far tree line.  Was heard to reply, Just before a confederate ball struck him in the head, 

   “ Nonsense, they couldn’t hit an elephant at this dist….” 

   Some lessons stick with us over the years.  Some are useful, while others are just difficult to explain why they linger; like say, I can remember the address of our home in Westminster California.  Perhaps because my parents took it to heart to teach all of us kids our address in case we got lost or needed help. Still, I was all of six when we lived there.  We moved to Northern California before my seventy Birthday, and I spent most of my growing up years up there. After graduating high school and leaving my parents, I traveled, living in numerous places. So, the idea that I can still dredge up 6381 Kiowa Road is no small feat of memory retrieval. Heck I had trouble explaining the name of the significant Milgram Obedience Experiment just the other day; and I learned that just a year ago. It’s a cornerstone example for all psychologist about the perils of obedience and how a situation can dictate unexpected behavior by ordinary people.  

So why can I recall insignificant information on the one hand while on the other forget who was the author of such a significant piece of science I consider meaningful?  I return once more to the all familiar land of I don’t know.  So today is my ‘who’d a thunk it’ day.  Where in my continued marvel at being human, or how we can produce some pretty funny antics, I remain enchanted with the prospect of more  As I often say,

 …and I like that in a person.