The Spirit of Learning

Alwyn wrote in his blog that he felt like he didn't learn anything that day. I absolutely disagree, and this was my response to him.

Who says you didn't learn anything today?! If nothing else, you put into writing a profound quote "Creativity begins with the generation of alternatives" that I personally found very powerful. Simple, almost obvious, but it reminds you that without creativity, there are no alternatives. On the other hand, just because there are no alternatives doesn't mean an absence of creativity (eg a practical impossibility). And then again, if you don't see any alternatives, that doesn't really mean there aren't any. Rather, your level of creative intuition doesn't permit you to grasp beyond what yourself.

Conclusion: What you learn every day does not have to be new knowledge. A simple revisiting of universal truth resulting in a deeper understand of said truism is, in my book at least, learning of the highest order.

Woah... I'm feeling philosophical today...

Therein, I think, lies the spirit of learning. Learning isn't just memorizing a fun fact every day, or picking up a new skill. All those are indeed examples of learning, but I think true learning happens when you feel that you have expanded your horizons in some way, shape or form. I think it's a good thing for us to keep in mind what is the true spirit of learning, for learning for the sake of learning is not learning at all.