Thursday, January 03, 2008

The Difference of Innocence and Naivety

With my nieces, Shayne and Trisha. 

The house is filled with a deafening silence...the clock ticks like the sound of approaching death...I look at the mountain of work waiting for me and my heart was about to burst out...then...

Hey, don't take me so seriously. Quite the contrary, I'm not back to my insignia of complex words or deep (way too deep to grasp at times) elaboration of my miseries. Neither I was beseeched again with unforeseen melancholic drama that consumed my whole being- body and spirit. Ugh! Tough.

Well, I was just mulling over some thoughts that seem to draw my attention lately. Like not doing anything worthwhile (another ugh!), getting the habit of grinning ears to ears even when my nieces are talking about something quite dramatic. (Now, that's alarming, right?)


Oh, there's another thing, thinking about words and looking at them closely. It's hard to explain but more of I'm correlating finally uses of words with daily experiences. Still not getting it? Sort of a delusion, a mirage, figments yet real.

Like when you say, "I hate you", you can not see the words yet you could feel the vehemence of the tongue. The power of the words in our lives, that's it!

If you say, "you are ignorant", well, that's mean. If you say,"you are innocent" more of an admiration. Then there's "naivety". A compliment or an insult? Well, it depends really to the speaker and the receiver.

Innocence on the other hand is a word that tends to be abused. Some would say "You are very innocent" but actually the speaker meant, "you're stupid and ignorant!". 

Conversely, children will always have that innocence in their hearts. Why do I say that?

Well, last New Year I heard mass together with my two nieces- Shayne and Trisha. The two were quiet the whole time. Then came the "offering of the sign of the peace", I kissed the two of them and when Trisha glanced in front, she saw this cute little girl. Instantly, their faces lit up. They both waved their hands. No, she's not Trisha's classmate nor a friend. They both didn't know each other.

The waving was added with that pure smile one could only surmise it came directly from the heart. Before I knew it, the little girl told Trisha she's Pauline and she's four years old, she wants to study in Trisha's school, and she "demanded" to know also Trisha's name and age. Trisha then asked the ages and names of her companions.

It was a wonder looking at them. All these happened while they were singing mass hymns, kneeling, and praying. Shayne was shy at first but ended up hugging and kissing the little girl. Everything occurred for about 15 mins. The three kids plus adult companions ended up best of friends. It was hard to separate the three kids when we were about to go home.

The kids' minds were not yet tainted with suspicions. They acted exactly with what they've felt. No second thoughts, no hesitations, no reservations. Pure Innocence.

Then there's naivety. Exactly, how can you say a person is naive?

Well, my friend, Merriam (online dictionary, that is), states that a person is naive if she is deficient in worldly wisdom or informed judgment. Sort of not yet corrupted? It could be.

Is it bad then or good to be naive? As I said, it depends on the situation really. I would love to be called naive if it means my ideology was not yet tainted but I would hate to be called naive if it means I'm being treated as an ignorant.

Let's talk about love. When you fall in love, will the innocence remain? yes, maybe. But, naivety will not. After all, it's a process where you've got to learn things that can't be found in any best-selling books. Shared moments...shared learnings...

Innocence and naivety therefore are both transient- ephemeral? yeah, exactly! As we sail through life, both will be washed away. Like footprints in the sand. As time passes by the waves of life will fade the mark. Then, kaput.

Nooooo. I won't end it like that. Not ruined really. The innocence and naivety might be gone but then the person ends up wiser, stronger and more intelligent than ever! There, that's it!

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