Lifelong Learning
The Paradox of a Truth
The paradox for me about learning is this: I consider myself a lifelong learner. I am committed to learning for life and yet, sometimes there are things that take me a lifetime to learn.
As a man who dropped out of college, I paid the price for that decision. I have also learned that there is a difference between formal education and self-education. I admire and respect both and as I have grown older I have come to know that learning is a lifelong proposition…and passion. The moment I stop learning is the moment I begin to perish.
Life is both simple and complex for me. The truth of that is paradoxical. As I teach, I learn. As I learn, I become more of who I am and consequently I become less of who I thought I should be. When I share that learning a cycle is completed. Life is a gift. Knowing is a gift. Time is a gift. The desire to learn is a gift.
I was taught as a young man to share what I had. I didn’t have much, but the lesson turned out to be another gift. Now, I desire to share all that I have been given…not as an owner, but as a steward with the desire to pay forward all that I have been given.
I encourage everyone to consider what can be learned in the paradoxes of their lives. There are priceless gems in the things of contrast, each of which holds unfathomable possibilities. Yes, being open to what is on the horizon without knowing what it is, almost assures one of being surprised by the wisdom and light of grace.
Blessings to all of you!
