Learning From The Old, Remembering When I Was Young

Looking at and considering the past, is like looking at and considering a wide image...
...there is much to see, and not everything is clear at first glance.

I was chatting with two elderly men yesterday, and some others.

I greatly enjoy speaking with others, delving into conversations of all kinds.

When speaking to the elderly, it doesn't matter their level of education, or what they did for a living, for each person's life holds a wealth of information and moments of wisdom valuable to those ready and willing to learn.

I learn a great deal about people, perhaps because that is what I am searching for - to learn.

I desire also to teach, or perhaps impart some experience, thought, hope that may help them.

Whether any learning is done, even through passive and seemingly non-purposed conversation, depends on the hearer.

I too am a hearer.

Learning from others and reflecting our past according to their experiences...
...one may begin to see clearer our unity in this life.

To learn about others is to also learn about this life, about myself, about my past, and about decisions I had made (good and bad) and decisions I should make Today and in days to come.

Our humanity is so intertwined.

We are so similar to all others in a variety of ways despite ideas that may cast us 'different' in our minds.

The facts point to a likeness we seldom appreciate.

When I was young, I thought I knew it all... or at least all that was important to know.

Have you ever thought like this?

If you survived your youth, and ever had a disagreement with parents or elders or society in general, perhaps you can relate to this.

Rarely has a child been 100% obedient to their parents or what was expected / demanded of them.

And perhaps most of your actions were in compliance of those older than you / your parents or guardians.

But you know that inside your heart and mind, you have questioned and wondered if there was another way.

Perhaps you imagined a better way, or that perhaps those older than you were wrong in some way or in every way.

In some instances, and as life has taught you, you were right: there is a better way and those before you were wrong in certain ways.

The closer we get to relating with others, to considering them better than ourselves...
...we are able to see things clearer and closer, even our distant past.

Surely life is a process.

Mankind has grown as evidenced by history.

Cultures have developed (and others have not as rapidly).

Development I mean human character and manners, not fiscal or physical achievements 

Throughout times there have been cultures and societies at the cusp of greatness (or more developed than their contemporaries).

The manner how people are now 'somewhat' civilized rather than being constantly indifferent at every turn is the point.

However, the evening news would cast doubt on the current civility found throughout the world... thus why it is mostly 'bad' news and fear mongering (and should be largely ignored).

Our individual lives reflect an effort (or calling) to grow, to mature, to 'become' someone from what and where we were.

We all went from being completely helpless as infants, to crawling, to walking, running... in literal and metaphorical terms regarding our humanity.

As adults, we now do things that seem simple and obvious, yet as children some of these things were great feats or awaited impossibilities.

Some of us are parents, and now we have the noble responsibility of raising the next generation of civilized nobles (or letting them become deviant tyrants).

We may impact children and others to reflect our morals and ethics, however those attributes are found or measured.

One thing is for sure: when I was younger, I thought I knew better... and talking with those two elderly men, I had to admit that my dad, grandfather, mother and grandmothers were right more often than they were wrong.

My pride persuaded me to contest their advice, and to admit them right and myself wrong was not befitting my lack of humility at that time.

Perhaps it was a lack of vision for my life on their part that compelled me to resist certain suggestions of theirs... at least this was my perception at that time.

Working towards being considerate with others is possible and part of the calling...
Then we are able to see the past planks we erected before the clear signs from Above.

I understand now they were simply speaking from their experience and what they came to know about life... for me to prevent pitfalls and discomforts.

Much how a strong work ethic is sometimes passed onto the next generation, so is a lack of work ethic, and abuse, or depravity possibly passed.

Yet, a noble parent doesn't always produce a noble child although the parent's efforts were always noble.

The child also has choice, and I chose bad often enough to plague myself with the troubles my forefathers were not desiring for me.

Also, a noble child may come from ignoble parents.

Thus a noble character can be passed on to the next generation, or it can be lost from one generation to the next.

Who can say if any semblance of nobility will return to the family name after it is lost, or the descendants of those once noble, or any given society or place on earth?

When I was younger, I was many of the following characteristics: blindly idealistic, immature, rebellious, emotional, lacking knowledge, little wisdom (if any), easily accepting impractical ideas packaged as viable solutions, abhorring the past without understanding it, shunning the past as outdated while desiring to 'create' my own present and future, and other such arrogances largely praised as 'better'.

I don't claim to have fully recovered from any of these foolish ways, because I still am a work in progress... like yourself.

It was like a kiss on the cheek to realize God's grace in my life despite my bold arrogance, my hard headedness, my dismissal of the direction that He has continuously placed before me through relatives and life's circumstances.

Even yesterday, when I desired to do work at a certain coffee shop and their internet was not working. 

I was a bit upset and my mood changed, since what 'I' wanted was not happening.

So when I walked elsewhere to hopefully get online and do my usual thing, the several hours I instead spent in conversation was exactly what God had planned for me.

When we are open to what God has in store, and less preoccupied with 'our' ideas of how we want things to go, we learn from God directly or indirectly through others.

When we put others first and not our schedule, we may catch a glimpse at God's schedule for us.

We may be taught by His Spirit and find more the Way.

I was taught many things yesterday, and perhaps many things were taught from / through me to those who passively or intently listened to the ongoing conversation yesterday.

Through it all, Yeshua was preached as Lord and the Way was continuously spoken from my lips... yet in ways riddled with parable, analogy, and all means reflecting the present company and their ideas.

When philosophy was the manner of discussion, Yeshua and His kingdom was explained according to man's philosophy.

Where religion was asked and perceived, religion was identified for what it is, and God's kingdom and the Way were preached for what they are.

Yesterday this verse was mentioned by one of the elderly men, and thus the Spirit set the tone for the hours that followed... and through it all life and love was experienced by me and those with me:

When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me. For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known. And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love. 

- 1 Corinthians 13: 11-13