Where Do Our Questions Take Us; Forwards Or Backwards?

“Only the one who does not question is safe from making a mistake.”

—Albert Einstein

Life is a long interesting journey they say.While We’re at it we are out to succeed;somehow,at something.And thereby find fulfillment.Of course every one has their own field of pursuit,which is okay.

Yet everyone is also a student.Right?Even the masters,the true masters, in any arena will tell you they are essentially students of their art.

And a true student often asks.Questions.Lots of them.

Flashlights of Life

Questions are the little flashlights of life.They help you find your way.They point somewhere.When you look where they point you find direction.You find answers.Answers that  bring hope,faith,purpose,and fulfillment along with them.Yet it is critical to make sure that our questions are right.That they are moving us forwards and not in the reverse.

 Repetetive Questions.

Once there was a young fish in a tank,along with many others.It would often swim upto a point in the middle of the  tank and then abruptly turn back.Why? Because all others did so too.Then one day it stopped midstream before turning back, from that fixed point, for an umpteenth time.It just asked why it was turning back,when there was so much more food beyond that invisible “wall of return”.

She asked the others and they told her exactly that.There was an invisible wall there indeed!Many moons ago the granny-fish in the tank had nearly broken their snouts bashing against it .They vouched for it.So now everyone wisely left the “invisible wall “ alone.Yet the young fish still wanted to find out more.Why,it kept asking,must we still turn back?Couldn’t the wall have disappeared by now?So she kept asking the older,wizend ones,while she herself continued turning back, like them, from that habitual point of return.

She was too curious,the others felt.Her questions would never fade away.Then one day she decided to do the unthinkable.She resolved to bash her snout against the “secret wall” too.Even at the cost of hurting herself,and appearing foolish before all else.And she did it.Guess what?She did not break her snout. Instead she went through the “unbreakable invincible wall”.The tank owner had placed a huge glass sheet to separate one part of the tank from another ,which he had long since removed.The other fish,out of habit,had stopped venturing beyond that absent glass wall,or even questioning its presence.Now there was no wall!Of course our little young fish lived  happily ever after; to enjoy the succulent meals across the wall,and also the adulation of her “school-mates”.

That is the power of repetitive questions.They open doors unseen.They melt mythical boundaries.They clear the way for richness unimagined.Questions that occur to us,and occur again ,and again ,are like drumbeats.They are telling us to fall in step with a steady march toward growth and accomplishment.

But do we honestly listen?

The Response :Street Side Or Hall Of Fame?

Often when questions roll downhill, barreling towards us ,commanding us to take decisive action ,we falter. Taking action is fraught with effort, change, and the possibility of failure. This is not digested too well.So we tune our inner ears out.We do not listen to the questions.We dare not.It makes sense to dismiss them. Quite like waving off irritating mosquitoes close by.Henry Ford didn't do that when his engineers told him that putting the V8 engine in one block was impossible.That’s because his questions spurred him towards the unthinkable. The Wright Brothers listened intently to some noisy questions too; the ones that asked them how they could kiss the skies like eagles do. Einstein answered interesting questions as well.In doing so he changed the dimension of scientific possibilities after them.Its amazing that all luminaries have a common thread concerning their response to answers.

When we follow the crowd we seldom listen to our questions. We only hear pre written answers that are a cheap copy of collective fear and insecurity.

What Do You Do With A Loaded Gun?

Questions are loaded guns. Their barrels spit out answers that enrich us,or spell disaster.When we “get” our questions all we need do is to pull the trigger.Fire the gun.Then wait for the report.It always comes,and in this case it  returns with answers.It opens doors.

Asking questions is a craft,which some people keep polishing throughout life .They arrive at higher levels of success each time.It’s a skill that brings hefty success more often than not.Asking questions is a fine art  to be mastered ,which few of us care to think about.Lets rest for a while with this thought.The only concern being, to make sure that our questions are relevant for our purpose.That they are pointed towards success,strength,ability,and accomplishment.Once a question has been asked it is crucial to see where it is directed.Is it furthering what we want or not?That is what we do with a loaded gun.Aim it well.Two questions in the face of similar challenge reveal everything about the aim of the gun;and the marksmanship of the one wielding it.Contrast this “why does this always happen to me?” to “What does this teach me?”

Where They Can Take Us.

Well crafted questions have the power to  lead us all the way to  our goals.Towards achievement,higher self esteem,assured growth,to heady fulfillment,confidence,and happiness.Misdirected  questions are the lovechild  of  impatience and insecurity.Despair and discouragement quickly follow..A primary school science teacher was instructing the students about the uses of a magnifying glass.Held over a minute object at a correct distance,it presented a clear,enlarged  view to the inquisitive eyes.A few minutes later when focussed  with the sun’s intense rays at another angle it burned,and reduced that same object to a smokey,smelly lump of waste.Questions by themselves are powerless magnifying glass.It’s the way they are held that makes the difference.

The right context is the true power of a question.

Over to you my friends.......