Learn to love learning

23 Sep 2015 Comments Off

Dear Fellow Journalers,

Here is another G classic. Enjoy!

~Sallie

Some say the greatest gift you can give anyone is learning. Certainly, learning is a great, great gift. To teach anyone something they didn’t know before is a very special thing, regardless of how significant or trivial it may be. You’ve enriched a human mind. You’ve given the gift of knowledge.

But I believe that there is an even greater gift—the gift of learning to love learning.

There is an old saying: Give a man a fish, you’ve fed him for a day—teach a man to fish and you’ve fed him for a lifetime. I believe the same is true about learning. Give someone the gift of loving learning and they can teach themselves anything they need to know for the rest of their lives.

Curiosity is the main factor in learning. It is the vehicle that drives us to the destination of learning. Some people have it naturally, but in most people it must be inspired, coaxed, nurtured and then developed. It is the main key to true, un-failing, and lasting learning. It is self motivated, rather than perpetuated by outside stimuli that are often not only temporary, but false. Contrary to popular belief, curiosity did not kill the cat, it is instead what gave it nine lives!

Learning made into a lifelong habit leads to not only a brighter mind, but also a more active mind. Research has shown that an active mind also leads to a healthier body. It has also been shown that it reduces incidents of depression. Perhaps most interestingly, it has also been shown to reduce incidents of Alzheimer’s.

Love to most people is a very special thing, with a very special meaning. Learning, and the love of it, SHOULD be given, and have, the same status.

I’VE SPOKEN, DO YOU LOVE LEARNING AS MUCH AS I DO?