by Judy
Learning is a treasure that will follow its owner everywhere.
-Chinese Proverb-
My Mother always says, "You should learn something new every day." I remember her saying this when I was a kid, and she still says it today. Maybe that's why I've always had the desire to try new things, and maybe that's why I am a self-described research nerd. When I want to try something new, I research it from all angles.
My newest project is planting a vegetable garden. It seems funny that I've never done this before. I grew up a country girl in Upstate New York. My Dad had a huge vegetable garden and we enjoyed the fruits of his labor just about every day of the summer and early fall. I've often talked about planting a vegetable garden, but this is finally the year that it is going to happen.
For the past two months I have been researching the best plants for a beginner gardener, when to plant, the best soil for the garden, raised beds, and on and on and on. To some this may sound like a lot of work. To me it has brought me such happiness. (and I haven't even planted one single thing yet!)
Of course, being the aforementioned research nerd, I even researched information about how learning something new can make us happy! And you know what? It's true! It's not just in my mind - learning does make us happy!
According to my research I found that as human beings we have a natural desire to learn and progress. This makes sense if we think of our ever changing world. There's much learning and progressing happening all around us every day.
I also learned that learning fuels our creativity. Learning something new in one area of our lives can trigger ideas in another. Don't you find this to be so true?! Friends who have learned to draw have naturally moved on to painting. As I mastered one area of photography it made me want to learn another and another. Now, my love of flower gardening has moved me to learn about vegetable gardens.
Doing something new gives us a chance to grow and to challenge our bodies and minds. As we learn, we gain confidence in ourselves, which allows us to learn yet another new thing! One of the most exciting bits of information I found is that continuous learning has been widely documented by researchers as the single variable tied most directly to improved health and longevity!
Do you find that learning something new brings you happiness? Have you seen your creativity flourish as you've gained knowledge? Come on everyone! What have you always wanted to learn to do? Now's the time to learn it! Not only will you learn something new, you will be improving your health and adding days to your life too!
"Somewhere, something incredible is waiting to be known. "
-Carl Sagan-
