Learning is never easy, and sometimes it can be quite unpleasant. We go through periods of our life that feel like one long workbook page that we can’t ever turn over. And as baby boomers and beyond, we’re apt to be a bit weary of learning new things.
Do we really want to know how to operate that latest gadget? Can’t we just send a word document without mastering a client’s internal dashboard? Why are there so many buttons in our cars that we can’t figure out how to turn off the bright lights?
In other words, haven’t we earned the right to be turtles?
To just pull in ourselves when things get too complicated and stay inside our shell, and let the world go on around us…assuming if something really interesting or important comes up, someone will tell us.
Well we can. But it’s not healthy. Sitting is supposed to be the new smoking. Sitting still too much just makes our whole body feel heavy, lethargic, and stiff. Sitting still means we aren’t exercising our brains, not reading new books and articles that could enrich our lives, and not considering there might actually be a new and better way to do something.
And more often than not, our sitting still means we’re burdening someone else unfairly. We’re too lazy to even try to read the owner’s manual, we just let someone else figure it out for us. We don’t take the time to go on a website and read about all the new phone options, we just ask our younger relatives to go with us to buy one. Getting advice is great. Giving up isn’t.
Hey, we’ve earned our right to take it easy, and even opt out of some things in this new world. But if we want to really be alive, if we want to stay as healthy physically and mentally as we can, we have to stay engaged and connected to what is going on. We have to keep moving. We have to keep learning. We have to keep participating.
Research confirms that over the years, our brains continue to change, building pathways and becoming more adept at seeing the “big picture”—in many cases, able to arrive at solutions faster than younger counterparts.
Research also shows that it’s really the “stretching” of the mind that holds the real value. For example, debating familiar concepts with others. Tackling a problem from a different angle. Or even just altering your routine by walking a new path, playing the piano with only your less-dominant hand, or conversing in a foreign language.
And what is the pandemic teaching us? It’s different for every person. For some, it’s how much they really need other people. Others have realized how important it is to get out each day and do something productive. Many boomers are rediscovering hobbies or trying new ones. Re-reading the classics. Writing that song or memoir.
Maybe most importantly, many of us are really learning patience. Cooperation. Acceptance. Understanding. How to slow down, without becoming a turtle.
We really are all in this together. But that also means we each have to take care of our physical and mental health as best we can. And cut each other a break. Especially those who are ill, worrying about someone who is ill, or taking care of someone who is ill.
It could be us.
Let’s keep moving, keep helping, keep looking forward. Don’t hide in that shell. Get out and rock that wrinkle like your life depends on it…because it just might!
Recent Comments