Keep Learning

There is never a time in life when we should be finished with learning.

Even if you are not enrolled in school or taking any classes you can still be learning. Look around you–life is constantly in session and that means if you stay curious and have a sense of wonder you can learn new things.

questions lead to learningPhoto courtesy of Artem Maltsev on Unsplash

There was a time in my life when I transitioned from a thirty year career in radio broadcasting to become, of all things, an elementary school teacher.

In 2008 as the Great Recession was hitting hard I was let go of my position with a radio station. Over the years in radio I’d moved my family around a fair bit and I didn’t want to keep doing that to them. Getting uprooted from friends and family to go to some new place can be very difficult. I know, because as an “Air Force Brat” I moved many times.

My choice in 2008, which stretched into 2009, was to find something else to do, to earn income to support the family, and hopefully in a job that was meaningful to me and filled me with a sense of purpose.

The idea of becoming an educator when I was already in my mid-fifties seemed a little far fetched. But I couldn’t seem to shake the calling.

I did my research and I went back to the community college to get a teaching certification. It had been more than thirty years since I’d graduated from a university with a bachelor’s degree.

What I discovered in the process was that learning was exciting. Hard work, sure, but also invigorating. And once I got my certification I taught middle school and fifth grade for a dozen years. A whole new layer of life experience came from that.

I saw an article in <strong>GRAND Magazine</strong> about the growing number of adults in their fifties, sixties and beyond who are enrolling in classes. Many are taking higher learning courses for the sheer joy of it.

Read the article and you will see they are interested in exploring subjects meaningful to them. It’s not necessarily about getting a degree. Instead, it is more about fulfillment at this stage in their life.

The article mentions how elders might be intimidated about a college atmosphere where they are surrounded by people half their age. However, it is a growing trend to see older adults on campus. And there is an incredible amount of education taking place online.

Keep on learning. It might be challenging at first, but the rewards can be wonderful.

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