The Learning Curve
As I get older, it seems harder and harder to convince myself to agree to anything that even remotely looks like formal education. If it’s got a test or book learning of any kind, my brain cringes. And yet, I greatly admire those who are older and seek to learn new things with a thirsty vengeance that never says, “I know it all already.” Perhaps because they are older, they value the learning with a depth no teenager can match.
[image error]Sailboat heeled overAnyway, I try to keep this in mind so that when my husband comes to me with a new learning opportunity—and he inevitably will because he’s an insatiable learner—I can push past the “ugh, classroom” reaction and say “yes” to experiences I will never regret.
The most recent of these opportunities came in the form of a sailing class. Now keep in mind I’ve attempted a number of boat scenes in my writing and I knew actual experience on a boat would trump anything I could read in a book.
My husband came to me and asked, “What do you think about a sailing course instead of a beach vacation this year?”
He’s usually a great salesman but somehow I think he missed the mark on that one.
Anyway, in spite of that rough start, he convinced me. So this last July we spent seven days living and learning on a 43’ sail boat. And there are so many cool, strange, and wonderful things I learned that I look forward to sharing with you. Boating, and sailing in particular, is a whole world unto itself.
Green Navigational BuoyTo wrap up today, I’ll pick one thing that encouraged me about the world at large. There are right-of-way rules just like what we find when driving but imagine, these right-of-way rules encompass all nations that touch the ocean and some that don’t but have large waterways. Admittedly, there are two systems depending on where you’re at in the world, but at one point in time, those rules were agreed upon by dozens of nations and are used for barges, speed boats, sail boats—you name it—today.
How cool is that?!
Blessings,
Jennifer
