Learning- A Life Long Recurring Confrontation.For the Best.

This last week I was asked to give my thoughts at a Relief Society activity regarding the phrase "Love life and Learning" in the Relief Society Declaration. This was nearly an entire week ago, but I can't stop thinking about it. When the assignment was first given I was really taken aback that they would ask me to do it. For one, I'm not in school and not really doing much learning. In the last few months the things I've learned best are cooking, cleaning and how to be a better wife. But as Riley and I are the youngest and almost the newest married couple in the ward, sharing those things would seem kind of lost to the air by the time I spoke them as everyone else there has learned these thing, likely, much better and have known them far longer. Needless to say I was a little discouraged. Not only for this reason, but the glitch in the logic was something that had been bothering me for a while now. I didn't feel like I was learning anything. I didn't feel like I was expanding in any way and I didn't feel like I had anything of value to add to conversation or relationships. I've sort of made myself a recluse recently and hadn't recognized it until I was given the responsibility of teaching on something I decidedly had no knowledge about, something that had been the crux of my most developed current weakness, and I had to get out of my shell and face people to do it. 

 Before I share what I've learned I'll quickly share that it was difficult to start, and unfortunately I procrastinated dealing with the issue until the day or so before the event. Usually this would mean I fell short and learned nothing but as this was such an important task I was blessed. God is gracious and knows me far better than I do, and knows the women I was to speak to far better than I do. He really went to town on me when I finally sat down to mull the issue over and study up on what I was going to say. And somehow in the middle of all my confusion and inadequacies he taught me one of the best lessons. A lesson everyone needs regardless of the point of education you are in, your age, your gender or career; be it mother, politician, student, doctor or anything else. Learning is good. 

Learning is a life long recurring confrontation, in all the best ways.  There is something that ignites within us when we are learning and when we are teaching. There is something about opening the mind to let in something new, that will uplift and shape who we are that  magnifies the awe, enthusiasm and passion with in us. Learning literally makes us better. And anyone can do it no matter where they are in life. Maybe that was the most important thing God taught me. That every single thing we do, every habit we form, confront or live by, and every word we speak with another person, every item our eyes can fall upon, every idea we imagine is a learning moment. Sometimes we just forget to let it develop that far and really teach us something. But all of those things were given to us in this life as lessons to learn. What is this life if not a learning period? To learn what's right and wrong. To learn kindness and charity to expand ourselves and lift others in friendship. To learn how this world came to be and all other forms of fact and science. To learn how to communicate or make processes and life better or simpler. To learn how to imprint a full life's knowledge on a growing mind of a child you love. To learn of God. If we can learn to look at everything in this world, everything in this life as a lesson we are yet to learn how exciting would that be? I know when I make connections in typical everyday things that I never thought of before I feel like the whole world is at my finger tips and that I can accomplish anything, even if in not as many words and in a smaller form of joy. It makes me love life all over again! I don't know. I guess what I'm getting at is that I've rediscovered a wonderful truth and it's made my world brighter. And that's something I want to share  with you all. A lesson from one curious mind to another. 

"The wisest mind has something yet to learn"

-George Santayana