Radiant In Its Sheath
Outside everyone's house is a great force
that will someday attack
Many have been carried off
mortally wounded
made crazed
So who would raise a child
and not prepare him for this battle?
Who would write a book
and not in some way make
you aware of the opponent you will meet?
Who would fall in love
and not learn that the most
effective sword is the one never raised?
The anger in others will meet you
so reflect a light onto your face
that can still
This brings to mind a powerful adage "the best things in life can't be bought". The important things in life can seldom be "taught" either. In fact, despite everyone having an interest in "education", the true education of life does not take place in schools. It happens in the day-to-day moments, in the intervals between seconds, etc. And one of those moments will be that someone angers you, disappoints you, confronts you, frustrates you, saddens you, etc. How you respond to this first (and without a doubt, subsequent) disenchantment in/from/to life is not, and probably never will be, taught by an educator, a parent, a book, a movie, but only by experience and your own decision to recognize that swords are quite radiant in their sheaths.
“I've been making a list of the things they don't teach you at school. They don't teach you how to love somebody. They don't teach you how to be famous. They don't teach you how to be rich or how to be poor. They don't teach you how to walk away from someone you don't love any longer. They don't teach you how to know what's going on in someone else's mind. They don't teach you what to say to someone who's dying. They don't teach you anything worth knowing.” ― Neil Gaiman
Outside everyone's house is a great force
that will someday attack
Many have been carried off
mortally wounded
made crazed
So who would raise a child
and not prepare him for this battle?
Who would write a book
and not in some way make
you aware of the opponent you will meet?
Who would fall in love
and not learn that the most
effective sword is the one never raised?
The anger in others will meet you
so reflect a light onto your face
that can still
This brings to mind a powerful adage "the best things in life can't be bought". The important things in life can seldom be "taught" either. In fact, despite everyone having an interest in "education", the true education of life does not take place in schools. It happens in the day-to-day moments, in the intervals between seconds, etc. And one of those moments will be that someone angers you, disappoints you, confronts you, frustrates you, saddens you, etc. How you respond to this first (and without a doubt, subsequent) disenchantment in/from/to life is not, and probably never will be, taught by an educator, a parent, a book, a movie, but only by experience and your own decision to recognize that swords are quite radiant in their sheaths.
“I've been making a list of the things they don't teach you at school. They don't teach you how to love somebody. They don't teach you how to be famous. They don't teach you how to be rich or how to be poor. They don't teach you how to walk away from someone you don't love any longer. They don't teach you how to know what's going on in someone else's mind. They don't teach you what to say to someone who's dying. They don't teach you anything worth knowing.” ― Neil Gaiman
Sir Ken Robinson: Do schools kill creativity?
TED 2007
No comments:
Post a Comment