Ever vigilant Luke on a Christmas Day hike.
It’s unfortunate that life, as a learning experience provided by the Universe, isn’t seriously considered very early in life. If it were, you’d embrace, utilize, and enjoy what life experience is giving you all the time. Gregge Tiffen (Open Secrets: Mystical Longings – January, 2011) -- [You can find it here: https://smile.amazon.com/Open-Secrets-Mystical-Gregge-Tiffen-ebook/dp/B01LG9UBFM/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1515626615&sr=1-1&keywords=Mystical+Longings+-+Gregge+Tiffen]
This week I found myself imagining a world where we humans aren’t bumping into one another so much. That is, a peace-filled world rather than the one we’re navigating where it seems we have to be ever vigilant to maintain our sense of self – self-control, self-worth, and self-commitment.
In reflecting on this need to be hyper-observant, even careful (can you imagine ‘filled with CARE’?) in the midst of the world’s chaos, I came back to a Universal tenet that anchors me when I look out at and need to engage with that world: Life is for learning. Remembering this is especially helpful when I’m in the midst of a challenging event. I am here – in this body at this time to do just that - learn. So are we all. And, wow, the opportunities are vast, perhaps even infinite!
But just how do we embrace the concept that ‘life is learning; learning is life’ with ease? How do we avoid overwhelm and pressure at the sheer vastness of what is available for us to learn? Here are some possibilities to consider.
- Recognize that you are always learning, even if you discover that you aren’t.
- Give yourself credit for ALL you have learned during this sojourn, whether it’s learning to tie your shoes or discovering what you don’t yet know. Celebrate how much you know and what is still to be discovered.
- Avoid comparing your learning to that of others. Your learning is as unique to you as your fingerprint.
- Use what you know. Experiment. There’s no ‘good, bad, right, wrong’ in learning only discovery of what works and what doesn’t.
- Acknowledge that no one is grading your learning! The Universe does not make mistakes.
- Embrace the idea that learning is a never-ending journey. There is no end, and each new tidbit of knowledge is a completed step on the path.
- Define what you want to learn, and take your first step toward acquiring that knowledge.
- Expect the unexpected and delight in new information and insights that seem to come out of nowhere.
- Question everything, especially things that you think you already know.
- Use your senses – all five + one of them. Some of our greatest learning can come from strengthening our ability to gain information from our senses.
- Listen to your ‘gut’ (your instinct or whatever name you give your innate sense of knowing) over what the world tells you.
- Travel the learning road at your pace. Adjust your speed to fit conditions.
- Recognize that all knowledge has the potential to become wisdom, and allow that wisdom to emerge in its time.
- BREATHE! Plop yourself in the driver’s seat. Fasten your seat belt. Relax. Have fun. Enjoy the ride!
Gentleness resting in the woods out back.