This idea is important for parents, grandparents or anyone working or living with people substantially younger than they are.
As is obvious to people who have read the Napkin Story I tried to impart all sorts of substantial ideas to my daughters over the years. But those ideas aren’t like food. Put in front of them and eaten immediately. They are more like a seed that is planted. It needs to germinate and grow at its own pace, depending on the soil, weather and other plants it encounters, not what the parent plant encountered. Just as in evolution there is variation and mutation over the generations so to with ideas and thoughts.
The key for the older person is to show respect for the thoughts and ideas the younger people have. Even if they sound similar to your ideas it is essential for the growth of the next generation that you accept that their ideas are their own, new and fresh, for the world they live in. If you do that you empower them to continue thinking and exploring and you give them the right example for how they should respond to the next generation when they are your age, many years from now.
“Those who say our thoughts are not our own because they resemble the ancients, may as well say our faces are not our own because they are like our parents’.” Alexander Pope, 1688-1744, British author and wit. By the way, you think you have good excuses to not produce good work? Pope contract spinal tuberculosis as a child and had stunted growth as a result. He also had severe headaches, spasmodic fits and respiratory problems. He eventually had to wear an iron corset to simply sit upright.
Thanks to one of my favorite quote books for that information, Geary’s Guide to the World’s Great Aphorists.
Greetings to yesterday’s visitors from Qatar, Chili, Israel, France, Germany, India, Canada, and the UK! Hope to see you again soon.
“Some people will never learn anything because they understand everything too soon.” – Alexander Pope
As some of you know, I host my drawings and photography on flickr.com. The most popular napkin on all of flickr is one that is almost indecipherable. It was soaked in water and looks more like a rorschach test than a drawing. I put it up anyway, many years ago, and eventually someone enhanced it a bit and figured out what it said.
I was giving a presentation yesterday (2/24/09) and showed that most popular napkin as I read the quote to the crowd. It suddenly struck me how much I love the quote so I decided I would draw a new napkin to let the quote be easily read this time around!
I love this quote because it is something I see every day. I am guilty of it as well, most people are I think. They are able to comprehend something right away, and they cement that understanding as THE understanding of that thing, event, person, etc.
But each thing, event, person is deeper than a first judgment and if you want the clearest path to really learning about whatever has your attention, the initial ‘understanding’ has to be moved aside. It is like a roadblock keeping you from going beyond it.
Where are your roadblocks and how are they keeping you from deeper learning and understanding?
Are you curious about HOW popular that original napkin is? It is my second most popular image out of more than 2,600 with over 12,200 hits on it! Don’t ask me why.
“Amusement is the happiness of those who cannot think.” – Alexander Pope
My daughter said in response to this: “hmmm, I don’t know about this one. I am wary of people who say that it’s better to get enjoyment out of ‘good’ or ‘intellectual’ things than regular fun things.” And I have to agree with her. but is there some truth in this quote nonetheless?
