Unknowing II by Lucky

I’ve written elsewhere about what I call “unknown wisdom” (see The Age of Actualization pgs. 172 thru 176). But here, I want to concentrate upon the particular set of traits, that many old folks have (without even knowing it), that add-up to a generative relationship with the unknown. You see, for far too long, the nature of ageism, has obscured, even to old folks, the value of the advent of ‘not knowing’ in the elder population.

There is a stage of awareness that extends beyond conventional forms of consciousness. This is something rarely noted in our usual social discourse. Developmental scientists, and gerontologists, are just beginning to notice. I call this form of maturity,  non-conventional consciousness. What that means is that some old folks have a particular savvy and creative way of looking at things, but they have been misperceived and silenced by well-meaning others. Our society has lost, like all societies that don’t value their elders, a great deal, in terms of perspective, but particularly, in terms of a more positive attitude towards the unknown future.

Not knowing sets in, when the aged begin to realize that what they know is insufficient to address this miraculous world. Some old people actually go beyond the ideologies of the day, partly because of how alone and isolated they are, and partly because their experiences, particularly of hardship, have introduced them to the unreality of our socially-constructed reality. These few are literally in the world we all occupy, but not of it.  They see vividly what most of us are only dimly aware of.  The unknown, perhaps because they are facing death, is particularly on their radar screen. It turns out, that in latter life, at least for some people, Life is more like being in wonderland, than many of us suspect.

The ability to find comfort in not knowing is not dementia, or even Alzheimer’s, but a particularly humble way of being fully alive and present. By in large, to we confined in the conventional agreed upon world, this mode of perception looks too eccentric, and crazy. And, by seeing it that way, we tend not to see the real value it holds for our species evolution. The unknown comes knocking every day, and we want to treat it like yesterday’s visitor, because that offers us reassurance, and because we want to fit in. The old, by and large, are well beyond those concerns. So they see the stranger for what it is, and tend to welcome the unknown into their lives.

Freedom from the constraints of normality, sometimes results in the realization of those freed, that normality is only a preparatory stage. When this happens, there are those who are willing to take full responsibility for themselves, and are available to see the world in its naked, unknown, glory.  To them, the unknown is a curious phenomenon, full of possibility; a potential relative, the ultimate resort and the best resting place, because it offers a fresh new beginning. The unknown paradoxically looks full compared with dimming emptiness of the past.

There is a kind of creativity that is available to the experienced mind, the one that’s been around the block a few times, that is unique and incredibly informative. Not only is known wisdom more solidly rooted in such an experience, but unknown wisdom, the kind that is needed to face a future that is different than the past, is also more likely.

There is nothing like falling through the cracks to alert one to what is missing. Old folks, especially in cultures that are indifferent to the possibilities inherent in aging, have to find their own way, and in so doing, develop some of the very survival skills that are most needed. And, being aware of the fecundity of the unknown, and learning to pay attention to it, is one of those skills.

Unknowing is an asset of this species. Our adaptability has waxed and waned as we have related with the unknown. The old are our vanguard. They are the real veterans amongst us, they serve everyday they are alive, and they could make a vital difference in our efforts to survive. Life has programmed some of them to survive for just this kind of moment. The darkness around our kind is deep right now, the known paths have been explored and are exhausted, it is important that some of our veterans be involved, to see what we have done, and to serve best, by staring into the unknown.

The future is by its nature unknown.  So too, are many of the attributes of the age we are now achieving. Old people are discovering what’s possible in that unknown — it’s likely that what they are discovering, is some of our future.