You Wouldn't Understand

     I am outraged and offended.
     I was listening to Terry Gross on Fresh Air (NPR) as she interviewed Uta Hagen, a once-famous actress who, with her husband, ran a famous acting school.  Terry started to ask her something about the way she prepared for a scene and she interrupted:
     "Let me stop you right there.  Are You an actor?"
     TG: "No."
     "Then it's none of your business."
     She went on to give examples:
     "You would not ask a violinist about his bowing arm.  ...about his elbow position.  ...about his phrasing."
     "If he told you, you would not know what he was talking about."
     Terry Gross, who is probably one of the best interviewers in the world, recovered very gracefully and went on to explain that she would ask exactly those questions.  Her business is to ask those questions.  She said, "Understanding more about (a) craft, helps me to perceive things about that craft that I would not have perceived before."
     In fact, studies have shown that any knowledge in any area of expertise increases general intelligence in other unrelated areas of expertise.  In other words, IQ is to some extent directly related to sheer volume of knowledge.  It is never wrong to seek knowledge in any area.  The Bible says that the wise seek knowledge because wisdom is based on knowledge.
     As an engineer/apostle/teacher, a primary part of my calling is to learn as much as I can about EVERYTHING.  To seek out correlations and interconnections between seemingly unrelated fields of study.  To convey as best I can the wonder and delight of my discoveries to as many others as possible.
     I do not believe that anything is impossible to explain.  You may not be able to explain it to someone else, but you will understand and appreciate what I am saying (if I am truly any kind of a teacher at all).  To appreciate the calling of a teacher, go watch Stand And Deliver, Dead Poets Society, or even School Of Rock!  A real teacher considers it his fault if the student cannot understand.
     As the interview continued, Uta Hagen talked about being blacklisted as a communist during the 60s.  She taught acting because she was not allowed to act.  I realized then that her response to the first interview question came from hurt and bitterness.
     Not really called to be a teacher -- only arrogance and bitterness makes the statement, "I could tell you, but it wouldn't do you any good.  You wouldn't understand."