Growth, learning and youth are three concepts that are intertwined with each other. Children’s minds are like sponges. They are ready to absorb what the world has to offer and transform it into something special and unique. They learn new things every day, and as a result, they grow.
However, learning is not limited to childhood alone. Adults learn from experiences they acquire during the passage of time. They may learn from those who have gained a little more experience in their field, or simply from someone who is older than them.
We do not stop learning even when we seem to have mastered a skill or when we seem to have been in this world longer than most people have. So, in truth, learning is not really a period, it is a part of life. It is life itself.
Life is a learning tree. These are the words that my teacher uses when a student presents a new perspective, or the latest piece of information. In my mind, these words conjure up an image of our life rising up into a great tree with hundreds of intersecting branches, each punctuated by experiences and information, like a bustling city. I imagine that as we grow older, some of these branches would become a little worn, some would remain untouched and most would shine with the wonder of newly-gained expertise.
The words refer to the fact that knowledge and wisdom do not attach themselves to age or any other factors, especially during this modern era when the touch of a finger can produce a multitude of information. The words refer to the fact that it is not time that results in learning, it is experience. It is life itself that is transformed into something that you can learn and comprehend.
Have you ever heard of the process of etiolation? In order for a seed to germinate and thrive, there are a few factors without whose presence germination and growth will either be limited or not occur at all. They include an optimal temperature, moisture, oxygen and light. Etiolation is a process that occurs when a seedling is provided with enough of all the essential factors but light. When a seedling is not given enough light, it is unable to make food for itself and will become thin, yellow, and elongated. It will spend all of its remaining energy to make itself taller so that it can reach a source of light. Experiences are like the light that feeds the process of learning. Now that we have progressed to the point where we can learn whenever and wherever we would like to, the only limiting factor to growing our learning tree is experience. If we make ourselves accustomed to a single routine and spend the rest of our lives living within the same habits, then we will reach a point when there are no more new things left to learn in the small path that we limit ourselves to.
Trying a new thing, meeting a new person, or stepping into a new path are all small undertakings that can help us to continue learning no matter our age or how long we have been practicing a certain skill.
Life is a learning tree, and there is no greater injustice to the beauty that new wisdom can bring than placing ourselves into a tiny circle of the world and remaining there.
