Learning Shouldn't End

I believe that learning is meant to be an expansive and lifelong process. What if my imagination expanded to a certain point and just stopped? Learning is not just recognizing what others know. Learning is so much more than that!

Many scientists are said to be so great at what they do, because they ask questions. They do not believe that everything is explainable and can be understood. They recognize that there is much more out there. They're not afraid to ask the hard questions. Scientists see the resources around them and use them. They may not receive the answers that they expected, but they work to find out what they can. 

Learning is all about discovery. You are able to discover yourself and the world. Through learning and exploration you can test the impossible and the improbable. You can find out why things work the way that they do. You ask annoying questions; you nitpick things apart; you don’t take no for an answer. You keep on searching for more than what you already have and know. You may have received an explanation, but you also want to understand it. You trust and respect people and their opinions, and their studies if they work in that field, but you want to comprehend and understand it as well.

Imagine if my mind had stopped accepting and processing new information when I graduated from high school (6 years ago). Where would I be now? I wouldn’t be able to do my job. I’m a teller at a bank, and before I started I knew little about how banks work. Every day I am faced with new problems and transactions; no two transactions are identical. There is still so much to learn, but I am very happy with what I have been able to learn and ‘pick up’ on the job. I have not only learned how to use the necessary systems to complete my job, but I have also learned more about how to watch over and manage my own finances. I have been able to learn from others some of the do’s and don’ts of finances.

I believe in lifelong learning. If I were the last person on Earth, could I learn what I needed to survive? Probably. I’d read books, think back on classes and movies that I’d seen, and remember experiences and scenarios. I could make it, maybe… But what am I doing now? What things am I learning to help me later in life? I am learning about being financially independent; communication in a relationship; how to cook and clean; car maintenance; home ownership; and growing my own food. There are many more things that I want to learn about, but I’m not sure where to start.

If I had other people around me who had been in those situations before or knew about these topics I would probably be more successful and efficient. If I rely only on my knowledge or only what I can read, I cannot progress as much as I potentially could. I can certainly expand my knowledge, but what is the best way for me to learn, personally? To be tested and tried, so that I can prove what I know and have learned.

When I was taking a chemistry class I had a love-hate relationship with lab days. I was excited, because I would wear goggles and get to feel like a mad scientist. I was nervous or unsure because I didn’t know what the results would be. What if I messed up? What if it didn’t turn out the way it was supposed to?

Where would our world and society be if we just gave up? If we decided that we had progressed as far as we could and learned everything, what would happen?

Learning is meant to be an expansive and lifelong process. What would be the point of learning and progressing to a certain point and then just stopping?