The Wisdom of Place - essay reaction

Honestly, I’m not sure how much of this excerpt I actually understood.  There was something about farmers, five generations, and walking through familiar countryside.  What struck me was an idea I recall stumbling upon while reading one of my favorite books.  The concept is that “self knowledge avails us nothing.”  In short, it doesn’t matter what we know.  What matters is what we do with it, or how we use it.  What I think part of Wendell’s essay is referring to is the inability we have to transfer our experience to another person.  Words, no matter how beautifully crafted they are, will never be able to genuinely and completely impart an occurrence into the consciousness of another person.  I can’t help but laugh at people who read a book and swear they ‘understand.’  I used to be one of their type.  Now my motto is to do it, then judge it, instead of judge it and then decide if I will do it.