We prefer not to know some things, and others are better left unknown regardless of our level of interest. Then there are those issues for which the answer requires living the experience.

For example, the opinions others have about you, in detail. All of it, including the jokes.

Imagine that your best friend’s partner is secretly seeing someone else; would you be wise to tell your buddy?

Do you wish your surgeon to be sensitive to injuries, worry for fear of harming his patients, and haunted by self-blame in the operating room? Might an MD ideally be certain of his skills, confident, and without empathic sensitivity?

Is there value in telling a young person what aging is like? The object would be to prepare him for what is ahead. Assuming you do, will he believe you, or continue to think of himself as invulnerable and ageless?

What should you say when your child asks whether Santa Claus is real? My eldest daughter asked me at age seven, and the truth left her in tears.

Ought you to inform your children about your worries, fears, and upset with the other partner who raises you? Does reversing the roles of parent and offspring help either one?

How would life be impacted if you remembered every happiness and sadness? Most will fade, and some will vanish on their own.

Is it helpful if you hold a grudge forever? The old saying reminds us that if you seek revenge, dig two graves. There are two of you involved, aren’t there?

Do you want a therapist who cries with you and experiences your suffering just as you do? Does this improve or diminish his ability as a counselor?

What is the right response when your patient says she is in love with you?

Is there an acceptable reason to hug a client?

What is appropriate when a beautiful, late 20s patient hands you a paper bag full of various condoms and sex toys?

Is your attitude toward climate change affected by remembering when the sky was almost always a deep blue with pure white cumulus clouds? An earlier birthdate might have been required.

Was the world of males in fedora hats, ties, and reading newspapers on a commuter train or bus a less stressful life? The TV series Mad Men offered a version of that time and place.

Did the Internet make for more harm than good? Do you recall the time before it existed?

Well now, I don’t suggest you ponder this any further. Take it for as little or as much as you want.

One thing, I hope. At least a few of you were entertained.

That’s the best I can do for now.

I have to go.

You wouldn’t want to know why. 😊

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The Question Marks is a work by Jerome Paniel, sourced from Wikimedia Commons.