Too Many Answers, Not Enough Questions

One of the things that women do better than men is to carefully analyze an issue before taking rash action. We huddle together around coffee shop tables, discussing the nuances of a problem from every possible angle, including facts as well as feelings; careful to give every person in the group the opportunity to provide the wisdom of any personal experience she may have on the subject. Or as men like to say, we talk too much.

It seems to me that the world is overflowing with information. Some of it can be useful in practical ways, like searches on Google and Wikipedia. And I don’t argue that we need to tune in enough to keep up with current events taking place around us. But thanks to hundreds of cable channels and round the clock programming, we have become accustomed to a stream of mindless prattle. I wonder if we really need dozens of reality shows that allow a glimpse of what someone else is thinking all the time. I think my life would be just as meaningful if I didn’t know how Snoop Dogg raises his children. I don’t think I need any more useless answers in my life. What we really need are a few good questions, like “Why don’t you just turn it off?”


So after two and a half hours of soul-searching with my girlfriends in comfy, overstuffed club chairs fueled by cups of decaf mocha latte, my friend finally asks, “Well – what are you going to DO about it?” There is a pause in the conversation while everyone stares at me intently. This is unchartered territory. Choices, decisions, action, and responsibility all swirl around my head like thoughts in a cartoon strip balloon. “Do? I’ll tell you what I’m going to do.” I lift my head, adjust my shoulders, and stand up tall. “I’m going to get another latte.”