Afraid to ask

Can't you relate to the disciples in this morning's Gospel? Jesus had just alluded to his upcoming rejection and death, but none of them understood what he meant. And yet, instead of asking him about it, they all kept quiet.
I know what that's like. When I suspect that something I heard is something I'd rather not know, I don't go out of my way for an explanation. I might tell myself it really meant something else, or that it's probably none of my business, or that the person who said it intended to close the conversation. But I won't pursue it.
I can imagine any number of scenarios where we are just afraid to ask something because we're afraid of the answer. But this is the one scenario where the answer is actually so good it is literally unimaginable. Jesus would have to tell his disciples (actually, he did tell them rather explicitly, but they didn't understand that, either) that his death was only part one; what would come after would be the beginning of a new creation.
Come to think of it, isn't a new creation on the horizon whenever we face something...we'd rather not face (especially if we face it with Jesus)?