Imbolc \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Woodpecker Moon<\/p>\n
A friend, who, like me, recently turned 65, said to me, “I just realized there’s so much to learn. \u00a0For example, I don’t know anything about China.” \u00a0This is an intelligent, well-read guy. \u00a0Hard to imagine someone waking up to the amount of things they don’t know at age 65, but I guess this is a true instance of better late than never.<\/p>\n
For some reason this makes me recall those little orange biographies that used to sit in the library, though whether the public or school, I don’t recall. \u00a0Not too long, they offered a quick glimpse into famous american’s lives. \u00a0The content has either been absorbed or long forgotten, but the world they opened up, a world of people and places I had never experienced, remains.<\/p>\n
I mention them because there were so many side streets on the boulevard of learning, some of which I knew well, most poorly, but they were in my consciousness from a very young age.<\/p>\n
Another guy, also a friend, said recently that he’d decided if he hasn’t learned it now, he doesn’t need it. \u00a0Following that thought he went on to say that he was “giving up introspection.” \u00a0In the ensuing explanation it turned out he was really throwing away self-help books, other peoples ways.<\/p>\n
In fact, what he was doing was allowing himself to start introspection. \u00a0Only when we go into ourselves without a guide, no training wheels, just you and the you you carry along, can we begin to make progress. \u00a0The Delphic Oracle said it best, “Know thyself.”<\/p>\n
I’ve read people recently who say this is a bad idea, though I forget the arguments right now, but I’ve found it a very good idea. \u00a0A project still underway here at chez Ellis.<\/p>\n
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Imbolc \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0Woodpecker Moon A friend, who, like me, recently turned 65, said to me, “I just realized there’s so much to learn. \u00a0For example, I don’t know anything about China.” \u00a0This … Continue reading The Wide World and Beyond<\/span>