What's worse?

Yesterday's word was: attache(s)

"Imagination is always so much worse than the truth."

A girl said this today in one of my classes and I found myself filled with rage.

And I'm not normally a rage-filled kind of girl.

In fact, I'm normally a rage-destitute kind of girl.

But it's just such crap.

She was using this quote to argue that something in a story should be more vague than it was (and let me be clear, it was already quite obtuse enough in my humble opinion.) And she was saying that it should be left up to the imagination, because the imagination can create things that are a thousand times worse. I'm pretty sure she even said, "Like when someone dies, you can deal with that- but the not-knowing is a lot harder." Though, to be fair, my blood was already boiling at that point and so I might be mis-quoting her terribly.

Here's the thing. Not-knowing is indeed awful. It really is. I've been there and all I wanted was to know what was happening so I could deal with it.

But imagination is only worse than the truth when... it's worse than the truth. In this case, the situation she was referring to in the story was child (sexual) abuse. Nope. Imagination isn't worse than that.

Imagination also isn't worse than a cancer diagnosis. Or widowhood. Because I *couldn't* imagine in a myriad of ways before it became truth, just what exactly it meant.

Imagination always being worse than the truth is something that people tell each other to make themselves feel better when they are afraid of something. But the worst case scenario does exist and if it actually happens, it will turn out to be so much worse than you thought it would be.

That's why I think choosing not to worry is the best plan.. and yes, that is a choice sometimes.

There are so many more things in this life that are a choice than seem to be at first blush.

On top of all that, I never think making something less relate-able and understandable is a good way to go.

I almost called her out on it. It was close. But I refrained, because sometimes you just get started talking and you say things that you know are stupid and then you have no way to backtrack and recant... And that's what I'm choosing to believe of this girl.

But, you can bet your bottom dollar that I felt righteous when the professor basically offered up the exact opposite advice... which was more in keeping with my own.