Blissful Ignorance - Poetry Blog Number 4 (APO 96225)

People are stupid. They think they want to know everything, but then they just block out anything that is slightly unpleasant. That's exactly what is happening in APO 96225 by Larry Rottmann. The son goes off to war and, no doubt, experiences things that the average American wants nothing to do with. He tries to protect his mother, so he hides all the horrible things that happen out there with remarks about the weather. The mother thinks she wants to know what he isn't telling her, but she doesn't know how bad it is. When he actually does tell her, his father writes back to him: "Please don't write such depressing letters. You're upsetting your mother." Okay, mom, don't ask for what you can't handle. Why would people want to be ignorant? Isn't it much better to know things so you can be prepared to face them sometime in the future? I would much rather know the truth than be taken by a surprise attack later. Ignorance is just avoiding a problem, and it will catch up with you later - no matter how unpleasant.