June 18

HUMILITY MONTH: DAY 18: “To really try to be informed and literate today is to feel stupid nearly all the time, and to need help.”― David Foster Wallace

Education is an interesting concept. By the time we have learned some part of history, it has already changed. By the time we learn one rule of writing, it too has changed.

I learned to place a comma after each item in a sequence. Such as 1, 2, 3, etc. That changed grammatically when I went back to college after 50 years of following that rule. Today, my computer tells me to do it again. I learned, relearned, and now am being asked to relearn again. I love that! It keeps me fresh and green, which is more and more a challenge as I get up into the higher numbers with aging.

I remember during that time when I went back to college and got a bunch of new degrees I took an American History class, along with another class on government/civics. Both were completely different than the history I learned in the 1960s and 1970s. Completely different stories of the same events. It was eye-opening because history does re-write itself. Imagine what it will look like in another 10-15 years.

We are part of a new time in history right now. Groundbreaking and heartbreaking at the same time. It is going to be interesting to see how it is viewed in another 20 years, if I get to be around, and if I can still read it.

That does not touch on the technology that is moving so fast most of us don’t even begin to keep up or know where it is going. I am not that interested, except in a very detached way. It is fun to contemplate where life will take us next.

But necessary to let go of any control we might believe we can exercise over these things. The best way to ride comfortably through life is like on a roller coaster…strap yourself in and enjoy the ride. Screaming might be necessary, but there is no way to get off the ride, so get on with enjoying it the best you can…I also love to let go and put my hands in the air and laugh…it helps dispel the terror of coming slowly up to the top of a steep decline…and it tickles the belly more that way…at least that is what I think!