I Really Do Know A Lot!

It’s really amazing how much I know. I know that there are times when I should keep my mouth shut. I know that other occasions exist when I should speak. I know that it’s never a good idea to assume anything. I often know when I’m about to make a big mistake. I know some things are better left until morning. And I generally know when I should make a left rather than a right. I know a lot. But even more amazing than how much I know is the fact that in spite of all of this grand knowledge, I find myself all too often tossing my intellect aside for some mysterious purpose that escapes me every single time.

A few months back our wine making group embarked on our second year of vinification.  We acquired several totes which were made up of pinot noir, pinot gris, and zinfandel grapes.  After hours of sorting and stemming and crushing and pressing, we had gallon upon gallon of wine.  Some went into large vats, some into food grade garbage can type containers, and some into five gallon glass carboys.  Due to the cold weather, we decided to move the carboys into a warmer environment, which consisted of a room about 300 feet away.  So here’s the deal. A glass carboy stands about 22 inches tall, and filled with wine weighs a good 60 pounds. Mix that with a 61 inch tall female who weighs slightly more than twice the carboy plus condensation plus a couple of glasses of wine plus a long day and the energy already expended to carry one carboy successfully to the new location – and what do you get?  The knowledge that the second carboy should have been carried by someone other than that female. I knew it the second I picked up those five gallons of pinot noir.  But I tossed away that knowledge like a used piece of tissue paper. And instead I carried the carboy the entire 300 feet and then proceeded to drop it onto a concrete floor at the end of my journey where it shattered into hundreds of pieces and wine flowed like water gushing from a broken dam.  All of that knowledge, but none of it put to good use.

I can’t even count the number of times that I have ‘known’ better, and proceeded to proclaim that knowledge after the fact.  It’s like knowing that if you run your finger down the sharp edge of a knife you are going to get cut. But something inside of you, some inexplicable inane power, causes you to discard that data and do it anyway.  Seconds later blood gushes from the opening in your skin and you shake your head and proclaim, “I just knew I was going to do that.”

Several years ago we took our family to Europe. The trip was amazing. Switzerland, Italy, Slovenia, Croatia, Austria, and Germany all made our list of must sees. We rented a car in nearly every country and I became our designated driver. On the middle section of our trip we rented a cute little thing in Slovenia and drove to Croatia where we stayed for three days. On the second day we drove south to Pula to check out the ancient Roman amphitheater. After finding our destination I parked the car, only as I pulled it into the slot I bumped the vehicle behind me. The cars were both fine, but the incident caused my husband and me to share a few choice words.  Angry, I locked the car, grabbed our backpack with our cameras, but did not put the keys in a secure location. And I knew better. We proceeded with our tour and when we finished the keys had disappeared. Thanks to the incredibly gracious people of Croatia and Slovenia a new set of keys were hand delivered to us nearly five hours later.  What in the world had gotten into me? To throw away my knowledge about walking around with a set of car keys in my hand made no sense whatsoever, but I did it anyway! Thank goodness my family loves me, and although they don’t easily forget, they do forgive!!

The whole thing is crazy. It blows my mind the number of things I could accomplish if only I actually used the knowledge I have. And I’m not the only one who is so full of all kinds of smart thoughts but for whatever reason opts not to use them. I’ve heard nearly all of my friends and family members proclaim their infinite wisdom after the fact. We’ve all expressed the same phrases. “I knew better.” “I knew that was going to happen.” “I know I should never have done that.” “I had a feeling.” And so on.

I guess we all know a lot… it’s just that darn application part that gets in the way!