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| BCoF Aug 22, 2025 Prompt: Discuss this quote in your entry today- “And those who were seen dancing were thought to be insane by those who could not hear the music.” ― Friedrich Nietzsche I didn’t get this at first so I Googled the quote. Turns out most authoritative sites claim Nietzsche never said this. But it’s the quote, not the author, that’s important here. Once I understood the quote, two memories came quickly to mind. The first is a scene I’d bet many people have experienced. At a friend’s birthday party we were in the backyard gyrating to rock and roll from the record player on the back porch. When I took a break to grab some lemonade I heard birthday boy Martin’s grandfather muttering about his grim outlook for the future based on our failure to distinguish between good music and ear-splitting noise. Perhaps an hour later I noticed him smiling as his head gently bobbed along with the beat. I can’t remember the song playing, but I know now he was finally able to ‘hear the music.’ The second recollection is more humbling. The day after a geometry test, Mr. Lind was handing back the graded papers. He made a special point of singling me out as the only student to get the final question, a proof, correct. I was proud of myself for getting the answer, but I was very confused by the fact that no one else had. I remembered that when I read the question, and thought about it, the basics of the answer became obvious in a minute or two. As I looked around the room, I started wondering how the other kids couldn’t see this. A week or so later, I was feeling embarrassed in art class as my attempt at painting a simple farm scene was met with laughter and ridicule. My good friend Susan leaned over and said, “Well, you can see numbers and shapes in your head in ways I just can’t. But I can see pictures and colors in ways you can’t. So let’s only laugh with each other, not at each other.” Susan was really the smart one of us. I miss her. |
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