Attention Forgetting

Attention Forgetting

Some might say that speaking without the knowledge of what we are saying is foolish. There are times we babble on with no apparent direction and provide nothing but lassitude to the listener. We could even question the fact of so many words having an integral part in our society. It reminds me of the hair-splitter who split a piece of hair so many times, he no longer knew if he was splitting hair or the wind. Someone came after and asked, 'But why was he splitting hair?' To which the reply was, 'If you need to ask...' A little attention then is perhaps hardest to come by. Words are cut so thin that it is no longer known if we are actually making a point or pointing to the idea we would like to make. In reality, it is not the word that grabs our attention, it is the reality it implies, what it makes us forget. The hair-splitter's conundrum is a beautiful thing to know. There is nothing new in forgetting, words will ever be split into absolute nothingness whether they mean the world to us or not, because that is where they came from; they are merely the psychedelic sandbar slowly rising above the level of the river. There is but silence before us, no applause, no cheering, no glory for those who ask for a moment of attention in light of the forgetfulness they have discovered.

Douglas Thornton