“We don’t receive wisdom, we must discover it for ourselves after a journey that no one can take for us or spare us.”
-Marcel Proust
It is often said that it is better to give than it is to receive. I’d like to add to this saying by writing that it is also better to discover. In this instance it would be to discover wisdom. As French novelist Marcel Proust says in today’s quote the impact that wisdom can have on us when we discover it and not receive it is priceless. It as he says, a journey that we must take on our own as no one else can take it for us nor spare us.
I firmly believe each of our lives embody our own pathways that are specifically designed for us based on our decisions and experiences. When we are just a receiver of either information or in this case wisdom we truly don’t own the work or learning. There really is no active engagement on our part like there would be if we actually sought out and discovered things on our own. Just think back to your education when you were in school. Were you excited about learning new things by having it spoon fed by someone else like your teacher or when you actually took an active role and discovered things for yourself? I’d say for me it was definitely the latter.
As my professor Dr. Clint Wright once said, “If it is to be, it’s up to me.” So in in this case it’s up to us to discover and gain the wisdom that we so desperately seek.
What does this quote mean to you and how can you apply today’s message towards improving your self awareness?
Becoming The Change 