Acatalepsy (noun): the idea that it is impossible to truly comprehend anything

The child’s crying grew louder.

Why wasn’t he calming down?!

The teacher anxiously looped around her desk, tearing her drawers open and revealing several sticks of lollipops.

“Here, candy!” She snatched the candies and shoved them in his face. “Don’t cry anymore!”

The little boy’s eyes paused on them for a split second before flooding with another torrent of tears.

Appalled. Mystified. Completely lost. The teacher had no idea what went wrong. All she did was give him feedback. The drawing was ugly, it really was! She had to give him her honest opinion and criticism, didn’t she?

The other children quietly avoided the mess in the center of the room. There was a newfound fear in their eyes as they silently worked on their own artworks.

“For god’s sake! Crying isn’t gonna fix your drawing!” The teacher’s voice was lined with desperation. “Pick up your crayon, please!”

She grabbed the boy by his tiny wrist and led him to the nearby table. Spreading his tear-dappled paper on the surface, her hands gripped his as they retraced the old drawing with a new, elegant one.

To her absolute horror, the child bawled louder than before.

There was no way she could understand him! After all, she tried everything she could. Her mother, her father, every single one of her teachers… that’s exactly how they taught her. So why, why wasn’t it working on him?!