Learning is the Key - Expand your Horizon

If you read my earlier posting titled “Stay Positive”, you will know, that my grandfather grew up and lived in a succession of very difficult times.  He was inducted and had to serve in two world wars. 

Despite the horrors he experienced, he was the most patient, kind, caring, gentle, and loving person you would ever meet.  His lesson about staying positive still inspires me and carries me through many challenges I have faced in my lifetime.

Another lesson from Grandpa was to keep learning.  The way he put it, was “whatever is in your head, can’t be taken away from you.”  He said, “They can drop bombs on your house, or burn it to the ground.  They can burn, steal or pillage your physical belongings.  But, and let me be clear on this, no one can EVER take away from you, that which you have learned.  Learning is the key.  It is the key to compassion.  It is the key to survival.  It is the key to rebuilding what has been destroyed.  It is the key to being able to pick yourself up and go on to lead an exemplary life. ”

People fear the unknown.  But learning will help you overcome the unknown.  It will broaden your horizons.

Learning in Grandpa’s view included learning a new language.  He picked up a French book and French-German dictionary and taught himself French.  It is true, learning a new language will facilitate discovering other cultures and will broaden your horizons.  Rather than fearing cultural differences, learning will enable you to understand a different way of doing things, a different point of view, a different way of life.  Learn to embrace these differences.

In my case, I only had two months of the Queen’s English (3 weekly 1-hour lessons to be exact) in 5^th grade in Germany, before my roots were plucked out of my native German soil when my father was transferred to the United States.  I quickly had to learn English, new customs to assimilate, and thus became bilingual and adapted to my new environment.

Learning also includes learning to be forgiving, learning to embrace positive thoughts.  Negative and bad things happen to all of us.  Take Covid-19 for instance.  This is a serious worldwide epidemic.  Now, while a cure is being sought, we all have to learn different ways to assure that we, our loved ones, and strangers around us will be safe from this invisible enemy.

Just like we learned to tie our shoes, we now have to learn to put on and wear our masks before stepping out of our homes.  We have to learn to not touch our face, eyes, nose, and mouth.  We have to learn to wash our hands frequently with soap and water for at least 20 seconds, to use hand sanitizer before entering and leaving a store.  We have to learn and practice social distancing.  We have to learn how to treat others as we want them to treat us.  We have to learn to respect one another.  We have to learn how to spread kindness.  We have to learn to be brave.  We have to learn to be the change.

Is it a big surprise then, when I tell you, dear reader, that just recently I had to learn how to create this blog, create my website.  How am I doing?

Learning is a lifelong endeavor.  Learning, seeking knowledge, education, choices.  Or, as Grandpa told me: “The day you stop learning, that’s the day you’ll slip on a banana peel and fall dead into your grave!”

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