How to know everything

OK, so I suppose it must be accepted that we will never know everything. But in response to my previous self-pitying and philosophising post, La wonderful blogger Belette Rouge asked me

I want to know how you know these things. I am curious about how you learned those lessons.

To start with, my immediate response was I don't know.

I know that sometimes I do sound like an old head on young shoulders, but this is well balanced out by plenty of entirely stereotypical teenage girl behaviour and a good dose of childish immaturity.

I know that I have not had a particularly eventful life, in comparison. Yes, I have experienced death, new life, success and rejection but not in any drastic misery-memoir sort of way. I have not lived a fast drugs, sex and rock'n'roll life and there are plenty of things I have not experienced which my comtemporaries have.

I know that I think a lot; maybe that is why. I spend hours analysing every aspect of life and still don't know what the right answer is. I am happy, though, walking and indeed also talking with only my own thoughts for company. Even so, I have once or twice sent myself into worrying hysteria. I enjoy learning, studying, so maybe I do think more than other people. But I also spend a great deal of time talking, without thinking whatsoever.

I know that I love people. I am happy with just my thoughts, but I come alive with other people. Last week I went to a party with many people who knew each other and didn't know me. They all asked me: 'how do you know everyone here?'. As soon as I meet somebody, and we make each other laugh, any negative thoughts melt away. Maybe it is loving people, both those whom I am very close to, and those with whom I laughed once.

I know that I laugh a lot. I can make people laugh. Sometime, I like my humour but other times I don't. One thing I strongly believe is that life is a 'laugh or cry' situation. That's how we can respond to things: either laugh at them or cry. Of course, I do cry, but mainly I laugh.

What I know for certain, is that I am a bookworm. I love reading, immersing myself into a whole other world. When I was younger, my mother told me that I read too much, that I had to experience life first-hand. But I'm not going to go out and experience Narnia first-hand, now am I? Even so, beautiful writing can teach you about the emotions of life in a way which I don't think hinders our own experiences. I think it enhances them.

So there it is, the route to knowing everything, according to me. Live, love, laugh and read a lot.