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When I finally tell about what I did last summer, I will have to include my memorable visit to New England.

In a sleepy little town nestled in the Connecticut River valley, I discovered the 18th century church where the Great Awakening all started with Jonathan Edwards. The Great Awakening did for early American religion what Coca-Cola did for the American palate: With sermon titles like “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God,” it may not have been all good for everyone’s tastes, but it changed the face of America forever.

In front of the village church, a kiosk plaque proclaimed that Edwards, minister of said church, was the guy who started it all. A well-known preacher in his time (1740s), sparked not only a surge in Protestant faith, he may have also helped create a climate for the American Revolution. A well-rounded and educated young man (Yale), he was also a naturalist, a philosopher and, interestingly, an “acute psychologist.”

You may wonder, as I did, what is “acute psychologist?” When I asked my wife if she thought I was an acute psychologist, she pinched my cheek and said, “of course you are.” I think she misunderstood, but it got me to thinking about the possibilities.

After a bit of research, I believe it means that, while Edwards was not a professional psychologist, he knew how to use a little psychological wisdom in certain pertinent situations. This makes him a lot like everyone else who has a hankering interest in psychology, and who would like to draw on psychological insights in a very practical way. Unlike pop psychology, acute psychology has depth, if only in the moment.

Every day there are life situations that call on one’s ability to apply a little acute psychology. It is like learning to make good use of olive oil in critical circumstances in the kitchen: once you see the value of it, you can add a splash here and there in your cooking, and then be glad you did when you taste the difference. It is acute in the sense that you may not wish to do it as a general rule, but in select places in your life.