Tuesday, April 29, 2008

Lifelong Learning...

So here it goes... When I read the title, 7 1/2 Habits of Highly Successful Lifelong Learners, I was immediately flooded with thoughts of my grandfather. At the time of his death, at age 89, he was still making lists of books he had to read. He is the single greatest example of a lifelong learner I have ever been exposed to; and by simply being in his presence, you would feel your time was being wasted if you weren't learning something new in every moment you were blessed with. He grew up as a relatively underprivileged boy from Indiana during the Depression, but he was given one break that he never forgot and would never let go to waste. He was given a full scholarship to the University of Miami for his talents in playing the violin. This one opportunity allowed him an education of a doctoral level and he never stopped.

He was a man who was always behind up and coming technologies. While cleaning out one of his many work areas, I found a typed letter from the early eighties about the benefits of being able to communicate with others around the world through phone lines. He believed in always pushing himself to know more, and worked towards making it so that others would be able to find easier ways to learn. He believed that the one tool you needed in life was the ability to read, and with that, and a library card, the possibilities were endless.

As I sat there listening to these 7 and a half habits, it was as if I was listening to my grandfather lecture during a typical holiday visit. He lived by these habits, and he taught them to me through his example. He had notebooks full of lists of things he wanted to accomplish. He was a great inventor, and would look at simple household items and find new ways to make something easier for himself. He surrounded himself with books, and when there was literally no room for more material, he would invent new places or ways of storing things. And finally, and possibly most importantly, he was a teacher. It was his career, his passion, his thrill to be able to pass on all his many discoveries.

I look at this list of habits and I am grateful to have been exposed to them throughout my lifetime. I find myself surrounded by lists of things I hope to accomplish and learn. I know that I am capable of learning whatever I may choose if I simply find the proper resources. And I love to pass the things I know on to others. The two and a half years I spent working in a classroom were some of my rewarding moments. What I find most difficult is containing my appetite for knowledge to one specific area at a time. I find myself all over the place, never wanting to stop on one thing for too long, for I may miss out on something new. In a matter of months, I can go from learning how to knit a scarf, to working on creating cards, to sewing a wedding quilt. My challenge to myself is to work on creating a tangible short term goal and seeing it to completion.
test 1, 2, 3...