The Answer is 42

As her field facilitator Heidi and I would talk about how to deal with the unique situations she ran into in India. I remember her saying over and over again, "I don't know the answer." as if there was just one answer. I would laugh and having recently read Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy I would respond, "The answer is 42."

In the field studies way I would never try to give her an answer (not that I had one to give in the first place). So, we would talk about the cultural, social, and practical implications of what she might do. We would talk about issues like race, gender, or economic status. We would talk about past field studies students and the impact of their choices. We would then surmise how certain actions would be received within the Indian context. After all that, either Heidi or I would say, "I just don't know the answer." and we'd be back to the old response of 42.

I feel that now. I am back in India facing more new and unique challenges and I don't know what the answer is. Life is too messy for simple answers, and yet I wish it were that simple--like the rote memorization Priya used to get a 20 out of 20 on her latest English test in school. I wish the answer was simply 42.