A Fifth Dimensional Adult

In Men in Black 3, there is an alien that sees five dimensions at once – can see past, present and future in multiple possible realities simultaneously. Sometimes, I feel like that alien, like I have infinitely more knowledge than those around me, who only see in three dimensions.

I'm constantly asked what life is like in America. Which is fine – talking about America is literally 1/3 of my job description. It gets fifth dimensional though when I start realizing the scope of my community members' ignorance.

“Jack, what does the inside of a plane look like?”

“Jack, where do they manufacture the money?”

“Why is it that if America has economic problems, we do too?”

“Are there Chinese people in America?”

“If your president is black, how can he be from America?”

“Are there poor people in America?”

Perhaps fifth dimensional vision is a strong statement – here's a more accurate comparison: when I was six, I asked my Dad a string of what I thought were pretty profound questions. I don't remember what they were, but I remember that he answered them all to my satisfaction. I then asked him if I would also know everything when I grew up. He laughed and said he didn't know everything. An obvious answer in retrospect, but it puzzled me at the time. He clearly knows everything, so why would he claim that he doesn't?

A week ago, I was helping two community members (grown men) with high school algebra. At first forgetting, I shook the dust off and eventually cruised through explaining most of the questions. But one stumped me, and after ten minutes of trying to solve it, I gave up and told them they'd have to ask the teacher about that one. They were confused, “How can you not solve it?” I explained that I hadn't done algebra in six years but they weren't convinced. But you know everything.

At 24, it feels strange to be considered, basically, a wise man. Especially because many of the unknown answers I simply learned from being a middle class white American. Rarely does my private university education or my training have any impact on the knowledge I impart to the people, I just have an incomparably broader world vision. A fifth dimension.

Maybe I should start my own religion.