Super powers

It’s an age-old question that’s supposed to tell us so much about ourselves, each other: if you could have any super power, what would you choose? Inhuman strength? X-Ray vision? Mind-reading? Invisibility?

To me, those last two are a little too close to omniscience for comfort. Once upon a time, I absolutely would have wanted that. Think of how easy it would be, knowing what someone was thinking or feeling without the difficulties verbal communication so often cause! How thrilling to see things you’d never be privy to otherwise! But here’s the thing: sometimes when you’re invisible, you see things you don’t want to, or that you had no right to see. Sometimes it’s painful and sometimes it’s angering and sometimes it ruins a surprise. When is what you see when no one knows you’re watching ever a benefit? And sometimes you’re invisible without realizing it, and the thing you shouldn’t see is imposed upon you, and while it isn’t your fault and you didn’t try to be disrespectful or untrusting and you don’t deserve the pain, it comes anyway. But with pain comes clarity, and with clarity comes understanding, and with understanding comes acceptance, and with acceptance comes peace. And so it goes.

As for me? I’ll take the ability to fly. You can keep the rest.