Let's Talk About...Trust

Ok. Let's think about trust. Yeah, I know, it's a big topic. A little out of my bailiwick, perhaps, but it is pretty universal, so, not really.

The Google says "trust" means, "A firm belief in the reliability, truth, ability, or strength of someone or something."

That's a tall order. So, let's narrow it down.

I am not talking here about the kind of trust with a capital "T," like whether we trust our spouse, our family, or our friends to stick by us through thick or thin. I also don't mean the legal document purporting to hold property somehow. And no, I don't mean whether you trust your government. Those kinds of trusts are better left to philosophers, lawyers and therapists.

No, I mean the everyday kind of trust.

Despite all the mistrust out there, I realize our lives are filled with solid, blind, potentially life-endangering trust that we rely on every day. Complete trust in complete strangers.

For example, every day, most of us get in our cars and drive. I cannot think of a more trusting endeavor requiring complete confidence in the abilities of our fellow drivers. We trust that other drivers will keep their cars in their lane, we trust that when that driver signals a turn, they actually will turn. We trust that our brakes are reliable. We trust our tires will get us over the ice and snow safely.

We all know the ultimate test of driving-trust is that scary four-way stop sign. Are we playing a game of chicken here? Or do we really believe that stranger drinking their latte and talking on the phone went to driver's ed class and remembers that the car on the right has the right-of-way? And have they even noticed who got to the intersection first?

We trust the stop lights won't shine green in all directions at the same time. Heck, we trust that they are working properly all the time as we zoom down the Diagonal.

And of course, I often worry that the car behind me won't stop when I am stopped on that icy road as they chat away on their trustworthy iPhone.

What about when you are out of your car and just walking? Will that car actually stop so you can cross the street?

And it gets even more serious from there. I trust that the pilot of the airplane I am on or the bus driver or the Uber driver wants to go home to see his or her family as much as I do at the end of the day. We get on an airplane, strap on our headphones, open our books and blindly trust.

And the ultimate trust: Dentists.

How do we allow a virtual stranger to come at our open mouths with a pointed spinning drill? Pure trust.

Similarly, we trust our doctors. Have you ever been lying on an operating table with bright lights shining in your eyes and find yourself counting backwards from 100 and by the time you get to 97, it all goes dark? That is trust, my friend.

Heck, we will trust these strangers, but not trust that your kids remember to bring home their dirty P.E. clothes.

We trust the sun will come up in the morning after a long dark night.

We trust that the rain will eventually stop.

We trust that the lights will come on when you flip the switch.

We trust that our phone will work.

We trust in gravity.

Sometimes we are disappointed that our trust is misplaced after an accident, a power outage, the internet is down, or we aren't invited to a party. Have you ever heard the words, "I trust you will show up on time?" That clearly means someone doesn't trust you.

But nonetheless, we continue to trust. Some things are just out of our control and all we have is trust. Trust in science, in technology, in our fellow human beings.

We are surrounded by trust. We are constantly trusting others and others are constantly trusting us.

So, I am wondering why we can so easily and blindly trust strangers, but we have such a hard time sometimes trusting those we know and love? If you can trust indirectly, why can't we try harder to trust directly? As George Michael said, "I gotta have faith."