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Stop Thinking

By Wil C. Fry, 2015.03.01, 22:27

(Copyright © 2015 by Wil C. Fry. All rights reserved.)


He said I walked in darkness
He said my mind was clouded
That maybe I should just stop thinking
About all the things I doubted

She accused me of using reason
To explain away her god
And told me that intelligence
Wasn’t something to applaud

“You know the truth”, she said
Then added, “My heart is grieved”
She didn’t stop to wonder
How her words would be received

“Reasoning... brings much confusion”
Said a teacher of Christian things
“Reasoning is dangerous”, she said
For all the sin it brings

I shook my head in wonder
That so many could be trained
Into thinking that thinking
Is something to be restrained



Stanza 1 refers to a friend of mine from the late 1990s. The second and third stanzas refer to a loved one who emailed me after I announced I was an atheist. The fourth stanza refers to author Joyce Meyers — the quotes are exact, from her book Battlefield of the Mind. There is no legitimate reason to stop thinking or reasoning, or any way in which reason could lead to confusion.

Originally, there was one more stanza:

Anyone who demands a brain block
Is simply looking for a sale
If not you, then another sucker
To purchase their untrue tale

I changed it several times before finally removing it, including this version:

Seems like anyone who attempts
To circumvent a working brain
Must be selling something
About which I might complain

Neither attempt had the same flow as the rest of the poem, but both contained the thought that inspired the entire thing. I’m reminded of salespeople and advertisers, who often appeal to emotion or other techniques, all of which circumvent rational thinking, in an effort to sell you a product. “Don’t worry about the gas mileage; just listen to this powerful engine purr”, they’ll say. Or, “Does it really matter that children in labor camps made this dress, when you look so good in it?”


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