Not infrequently, Fintan’s thoughts turn to
the future. On the matter, he is always sober and ruminative. He peers forward
and seeks to imagine what he will find one future day. I usually find his views
reasonable and likely. He seems to have a good grasp on what may happen. Is it
logic that guides him, or intuition? I rather think it is the latter, from the
way he seems to feel out a picture of tomorrow.
Yesterday, Fintan, 9, asked me:
“Do you think technology will keep on getting higher?” He seemed to be holding
a hidden thought in his mind, as if he were seeking to measure his own thought,
against mine, but was holding it back so that I wouldn’t be influenced by his.
“I think it will get better, yes...what do
you think?” I held my thought lightly on my tongue, so that it would not
pressure his into conformity.
“I think we will have better technology,
but will use less of it.” He almost seemed to see this diminished world, before
his inner sight.
“Why? Is that because of energy supply
“Yes.” He was both matter of fact and
“So, although the technology is available,
most people won’t be able to afford the energy for them?”
He just gave an affirmative nod, his
silence holding an opinion about this yet to be seen world.
As with many conversations with Fintan, I
found his conclusions uncomfortably likely. Whatever reasoning processes he
went through, the outcome is quite a convincing possible tomorrow.
It is funny to hear him speak so. He is
just 9 years old – and what, one wonders , can a 9 year old know of the world?
Well, it seems he knows enough of TODAY, to anticipate a far TOMORROW, by some
inner projection. He can see where the world is headed. What is darkly funny,
of course, is that many of our leaders, with many more than just 9 years, don’t
seem to be able to anticipate outcomes, with the same proficiency. He seems to
be thinking more, in this way, than many do.
Is Fintan right? Do we face a diminished
tomorrow, in which, although our powers of technology are greater, we simply
don’t have the energy to power them, to the ubiquity we would like? Is
technology to be rationed to the rich?
If we look around us and see that fossil
fuels are running out; Uranium is in short supply, and renewables are just not
ready, it does seem clear that Mankind faces an energy crisis in the decades
ahead. A 9 year old child can sense this...so why are the world’s leaders not
making more of it: why are they not preparing more actively for such a world by
investing in alternative ways to power it?
The answer seems clear, my little 9 year
old son, has a longer term view than most world leaders. Now, that IS sobering.
I like these chats with Fintan, for he
prompts me to reflect on times ahead, some of which I may never see. It is
good, though, that he considers the future he may one day live through. I
think, he will have prepared himself, mentally, for the challenges ahead, for
having modelled them, in advance. There is no better preparation than
forethought – and Fintan does plenty of that.
Posted by Valentine Cawley
(If you would like to support my continued writing of this blog and my ongoing campaign to raise awareness about giftedness and all issues pertaining to it, please donate, by clicking on the gold button to the left of the page.To read about my fundraising campaign, please go to: http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2011/01/fundraising-drive-in-support-of-my.html and here: http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2011/01/fundraising-drive-first-donation.htmlIf you would like to read any of our scientific research papers, there are links to some of them, here: http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2011/02/research-papers-by-valentine-cawley-and.htmlIf you would like to see an online summary of my academic achievements to date, please go here: http://www.getcited.org/mbrz/11136175To learn more of Ainan Celeste Cawley, 10, or his gifted brothers, Fintan, 7 and Tiarnan, 5, please go to: http://scientific-child-prodigy.blogspot.com/2006/10/scientific-child-prodigy-guide.htmlI also write of gifted education, child prodigy, child genius, adult genius, savant, megasavant, HELP University College, the Irish, the Malays, Singapore, Malaysia, IQ, intelligence and creativity.There is a review of my blog, on the respected The Kindle Report here:http://thekindlereport.blogspot.com/2010/09/boy-who-knew-too-much-child-prodigy.htmlPlease have a read, if you would like a critic's view of this blog. Thanks.You can get my blog on your Kindle, for easy reading, wherever you are, by going to: http://www.amazon.com/Boy-Who-Knew-Too-Much/dp/B0042P5LEE/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&m=AG56TWVU5XWC2&s=digital-text&qid=1284603792&sr=8-1Please let all your fellow Kindlers know about my blog availability - and if you know my blog well enough, please be so kind as to write a thoughtful review of what you like about it. Thanks.My Internet Movie Database listing is at:http://imdb.com/name/nm3438598/Ainan's IMDB listing is at http://imdb.com/name/nm3305973/Syahidah's IMDB listing is at http://imdb.com/name/nm3463926/Our editing, proofreading and copywriting company, Genghis Can, is athttp://www.genghiscan.com/This blog is copyright Valentine Cawley. Unauthorized duplication is prohibited. Use only with permission. Thank you.)
Labels: Fintan Cawley, Fintan's conversational style, Fintan's Logic, Fintanism, In the eyes of a child, on being prepared, predicting the future, Prophecy, seeing the future, the world we leave our children