A few days ago, I was riffing on procrastination and wondering why I was so resistant to writing an article. I certainly wasn’t obliged to write it and I wasn’t being paid for it, but I had said I would write it, so I did. 500-1200 words on belief aimed at 15-20-year-olds, which is a massive age spread, by the way. I was determined to get it done in that sitting and I got some okay work done and decided I was happy with it.
Later that night I realised I hadn’t written what I wanted to write. It was far too personal and didn’t really express what I wanted to say. I am fascinated by our belief systems and how they shape society, and I produced a wishy-washy personal history. So I went back and had another go, but as it may potentially be published in another book I won’t put the whole article here, so here’s an excerpt.
Experimenting and trying new things is part of growing as a human but too many people in power are reluctant to be seen as uncertain or needing help. Remember Tony Abbot’s ‘captain’s call’ a few years back, awarding an Australian knighthood to none other than Prince Phillip? I wonder if more than a few politicians grew up thinking adults knew everything, and now, because they are an adult, believe they are infallible.
It’s okay. Hopefully, the editors will be happy with it.
The basic theme of the article is that our parents and elders don’t necessarily have all the answers and that each person owes it to himself to embrace learning, long after our school days. Not only have scientists found that life-long learners are happier, but they tend to be healthier too. If everyone read at least 1 book a month the world would be a better place.
But most of all, we need to keep learning because we don’t know what we don’t know. That’s a bit of a slow-burner but it’s a quote that keeps on giving! Essentially, if we’re not prepared to read widely and take an interest in the world, we can get bogged down in daily life, and worse; we could wind up a blow-hard who shouts at the television news or sends abusive tweets to randoms.
At the end of the day, learning helps up with empathy because if nothing else it helps us to see the extent of how little we really know.
What else have I been thinking about…?
I’ve been thinking a lot about archetypes and how reading fiction can be informative as well as entertaining. I have just written an idea for a novel with witches who don’t realise they have powers and non-witches (okay, muggles!) who pretend they do. I wonder what that says about me?
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