Innocence 

Last night I went on a walk around midnight. It was cool outside and very pleasant. The air smelled nice, the sounds were that of night. The occasional car drove by, the other night owls were out walking around, and high school kids scurrying through the alleys, just happy to be out and away from the house. It was these very high school kids running around, 3 girls, 2 boys, that got me thinking. They seemed to all have this innocence which was priceless. 

As I walked past them I saw the boys and girls all at arm distance from each other. There was awkward laughing and giggling. The girls talking to the girls, and the boys talking to each other. Innocence was still a virtue. These young teenagers weren't out experimenting with any number of things, they were simply enjoying company. The boys thinking, wow we are hanging out with girls, and the girls thinking wow these boys are so cute. Pure innocence.

Now onto another note about innocence. Doesn't the world seem so much nicer before we know more about it? Why does the pursuit of knowledge lead to loss of innocence? For example, think of food. When we are kids we know good food and we know bad food. The difference is good food is the food mom makes for dinner, and bad is food is that food from the local gas station. Now as we get older and more knowledgeable we start looking at food differently, yet again. We see processed food and real food. Some of us even move a step further and see organic food, quality free-range meats, eggs, etc. from conventional food. It is this step where we begin to loose even more innocence. We start seeing the evils of the conventional food industry. 87% of all antibiotics are not used in the treatment of humans, but the treatment of animals in feed lots. Pesticides, which cause cancer, sickness, and death are sprayed on our food, and that food is marketed as healthy. Chemical companies own life and genetically modify it and claim it makes us healthier and is better for the planet. Studies out of Europe have confirmed the exact opposite. GMOs shut down 2 primary detox organs, the liver and kidneys. The question then remains what kind of health are they helping? The answer is this so called 'healthcare' industry. Who makes money from this 'innocence' of the American public on the issue of food?

This is just one case of innocence in American society. I like the word innocence because once people become educated about what is really going on it is a loss of innocence. It is something you will never get back. It is like your first kiss, your first girlfriend, your first sexual encounter, etc. You can be naive over and over again, but you can only loose innocence once before a new baseline is established. The new baseline is then set at your new level of innocence.

Now back to the innocent teenagers in the night. It was pleasant seeing such a wealth of innocence walk by me, but they too will someday become less innocent. Let's hope this loss of innocence will lead to a better, healthier life. For all of you reading this, let your loss of innocence in life be for the better. Loose your innocence with knowledge. Become smarter and spread that knowledge.

-Dr. Kurt