Living with Uncertainty

Sitting in the lobby waiting for them to come down the elevator at our agreed upon time. Watching people pass through the lobby, walking to the elevator assured that the doors will open, certain they will arrive at their requested floor.  A couple walking to the door, certain their walk will be a pleasant one to the restaurant as planned.  No one that I observed was uncertain that their immediate goal or destination would not yield the result they were certain of…..yet there are many people who live with a consistent level of uncertainty.  Perhaps on some level we all feel uncertain about the result of the next day, project ,or event.  Certainty has a price tag and thus those who are more blessed are perhaps more certain.  The idea of our continued existence in a climate changing world or the insane rhetoric coming from unqualified people in positions of authority can make even the most well assured— uncertain.  Uncertainty has become weaponized to make us fearful and insecure.  Imagine how those in the war-ravaged parts of the world deal with the uncertainty that questions their very existence.  The audacity of those in power making pronouncements that they know nothing of what they say.  It is this weaponization of fear and uncertainty that keeps them in power— the pillars of certainty.  Those that trust in them must believe because if they admit to the truth then their uncertainty rises to a level that cannot be tolerated. 

Uncertainty keeps us on edge, slightly off center — maybe more than slightly.  It is the power of uncertainty that keeps us focused on the outrageous pronouncements.  If we don’t believe in what they say then we must deal with the choices that we made that resulted in the large numbers of unqualified people in positions of power.  It is the very uncertainty they sow that keeps them in the positions of power. 

We live in an uncertain world.  The elevator might not come but we are certain it will.  The belief in the truth is what makes us certain. Fearing the uncertain makes us fearful and fear makes us grasp for the truth even when it is a lie. Accepting the lie weaponizes the uncertain and thus the fear. Accept the truth of our uncertain world, the elevator will come as we believe it will.