I'd rather not know

It's a well known saying that knowledge is power. There is a bit of the voyeur in all of us, whether we want to admit to it or not. Most people I know trade gossip, however innocuous, in one way or another. Sometimes. however, there are times when I wished I didn't know what I know and I was capable of unlearning something. A good example is finding out something about a friend that changes your view of them. How often, following a separation or a divorce do you hear the comment "and they were so happy together"? What a ridiculous observation that is. They obviously weren't happy it's just that they kept it to themselves or you never found out. Other knowledge has different ramifications. My daughter in law used to to chat to a rather straight laced woman in the school playground waiting for the kids to finish school. The woman was very "middle class" and somewhat dismissive of many of her contemporaries. Some time ago they were at a party at a mutual friends house. They didn't speak but this woman got horrendously drunk and proceeded to tell all and sundry, in a loud voice, that she "loved to take it up the arse". Meetings at the school playground were never the same again. My daughter in law had no idea whether the woman knew her sexual preference was public knowledge but she couldn't speak to the woman without imagining her in a somewhat undignified position. I worked in Manchester many years ago and an insurance contact used to give lurid details of an affair he was having with the wife of a bloke that I knew of. It meant nothing to me until I bumped into the fellow and he invited me in to his office for a drink. On his desk was a photo of his wife,a rather plain looking woman. He talked about her constantly. It was uncomfortable. I know of an old man who deflowered the virgin brides of three of his sons. I'd rather not have known. Knowledge can indeed be power but sometimes, ignorance is bliss.