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Proverb: Ignorance is bliss
I’m going to start my publishing week with a handy little proverb: ignorance is bliss.
In only three words, it states a considerable truth.
If you don’t know about the bad things in life, then you are not bothered by them.
More often than not, knowing about the unpleasant things which are happening in the world makes us unhappy.
Did you know that people can get post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) from watching the news?
Yep, it’s true.
Due to the 24-hour news cycle and the tendency of the media to only focus on the negative, we see life as more dangerous than it is.
This misperception then feeds our need to know, which means we watch more news and feel even worse.
Anyone who knows me will tell you that I am a news junky.
When I first came to Japan, I spoke and read no Japanese.
I also was unaware of how to get the news in English.
I quickly realized that I enjoyed not knowing what was going on in the world.
In other words, I came to understand that ignorance is bliss.
That’s one of the reasons why Tuesday is my day to be unplugged.
I make it a habit not to use any digital devices on Tuesdays so that I can once again experience that ignorance-is-bliss feeling.
Sometimes, it’s best for us not to know things.
That way, we can be happier.
The next time you’re feeling over-stressed, remember ignorance is bliss; turn off your devices and tune out for a while.
You’ll feel better for it.
Flesch-Kincaid Readability Test
This post is understandable by someone with at least a 7th-grade education (age 12).
On the Flesch-Kincaid reading-ease test, this post scores 78.
The higher the score on a scale of 0 – 100, the easier the passage is to read.