“ Learning about Learning ~ the Quest for Self”
My mother told me that I have always been a “big-picture” thinker; that I never met a stranger, just a friend I did not yet know; that I have always professed,
“I LOVE THE WHOLE WORLD”
Mom always said I possessed something
“special” to contribute to society…but what did that mean?
During my first life—I was content within the comfortable environment of growing up on a small dry-land wheat farm, as a child. Later I became a mother performing the tasks of nurturing to my children, family, and community through the loving action of volunteering and adding social asset to my small little world. The 1980s witnessed the beginning of a social consciousness that became entwined in the dynamic evolution of the agrarian culture within the general society. Industrialization and the widespread use of chemical warfare on plant and animal ushered in an era of agrarian-greed; at least that was the perspective presented by the media and environmental extremists. As economic times became more difficult within our predominantly patriarchal social structure, and the pressures of urban society crept into our daily existence, families began to wither and break apart like the milkweeds in fall. I watched helplessly as my husband slipped into a devastating and profound depression deepened by his addition to alcohol. As the ability to control his environment slipped away so went the emotional attachment of a husband, father, and valued family member.
Without knowledge of what is happening to our environment and why—all that is left is gut-reaction. With the social and medical illness of my life-partner, the pressure of the vacuum I had placed myself in became unbearable; chaos entered—now a new order must materialize. I finally understood that change was necessary and inevitable. I visualized two personal decisions that I must choose from for the safety of my children and myself: either submit to the loss of my spirit and soul in the drought of this relationship, or adapt and survive...obviously, I chose to survive. As painful as it felt at the time, my experiential learning was facilitated through adaptation in the physical world of gut-reactions and environmental change.
What that meant to
me—embedding the core elements that comprise my being, (my essence), and
embark on a journey, a quest to redesign myself by opening my mind and heart to
a variety of environments, and seeking new definitions and meaning to the
sacred values imprinted during the space of my childhood. Since “I” was lost it
was time to rediscover “me”. Teresa and her
children, her family, and community all had to embark on an inner-exploration
of adaptation and rediscovery—Teresa had to seek a higher level of learning
through education, knowledge, and rediscovery.
We all are embedded in a system
of influence; the individual eventually impacts the whole, and the environment
of the whole in turn, influences the individual. We—each are apart of a cycle
of the universe….
~ Learning is a whole-body-experience ~
EDUCATION—the discovery that I can learn a new form of language. This language is both internal (self-talk) and external, in the form of being able to grasp and express new ideas, concepts and conversation. The process of creating new dynamic relationships with family, friends, and the community at large begins from within the self; education gave me the language, permission, and tools to begin the process of change. Education allowed me to discover that I had all the basic tools of survival I only needed to sharpen them.
I am not alone in my purpose—human service professionals are, as a colony of ants which have established a system of skillful caretakers and nurturers, builders of a social structure supported by a physical structure and commonality of outcome. We are independent yet connected through the scent trail of communication and empathy.
The messages of this quarter are that, as human service professionals we must critically examine all forms of media for correctness and thoroughness of content; to understand where your information is coming from before determining it’s value; that all humanity is capable of portraying loving or hateful behavior towards others. Education is an exposure to different perspectives or a different way of looking at a condition or issue, and education should expose the individual to “question” and critical thinking, to research and developing one’s own methodology and belief system.
Education is to the student is what sun and rain are to the soil, they open up all the potential laying underneath the surface—they just need enlightenment and cultivation My sunrise is another countries sunset—the knowledge of where I am is in relation to the (current) situation I find myself in. Maintaining an open mind to any given situation, one must see from sunrise to sunset before determining which is east and which is west.
KNOWLEDGE—the integration and application of education and internal knowing. The realm of inner-knowledge must become my new “frontier” of exploration. It is not enough to create theory, data, change, and new beginnings; as one within society I need the strength and purpose to integrate these actions into meaning within the universal system of life and death, as well as the global systems that attempt to address all human living conditions. Knowledge and sense of self incorporates the “invisible” elements of ethical, moral, and intuitive connectedness and balance. What I have learned from my Human Services education is the tangible value of self—again.
The very tiny girl with a very loud voice and an even bigger heart and passion for life, has discovered through the process of question and personal exploration, numerous ways to put her love into actions. The actions that will benefit those near and far perhaps even around the world, but most definitely within the intimate environment of self.
REDISCOVERY—connecting our inner-essence with new purpose, concepts, and language. If each of our cells indeed contains the essence of our existence, then each person contains the essence of social consciousness. I am individually and collectively responsible to our society; I am responsible for expecting a loving, nurturing, and family supportive environment. I now have the “sharpened” tools to initiate positive social change and I am compelled to at least attempt to improve my environment. I have discovered the source of my eternal thirst within my continual thirst for understanding. I have recaptured the fire of injustice that I often felt as a youngster, within the suffering of others who are unable to speak for or defend themselves. I have re-ignited the passion and love of others, once sang loud and clear by the little me; this is what learning is about—to me.
TRUE LEARNING—in human services results in knowledge and rediscovery,
which manifest it’s self in loving actions toward self and the rest of humanity including our environment.
It has been my experience that most of us learn more thoroughly through painful experiences. I even remember when very young those painful leg aches I would experience at night when lying quietly in bed; those are just growing pains, my mother would advise me. I was comforted and pleased that with her answer, either there were many others who suffered along with me or that my suffering would result in (desired) growth, either conclusion was acceptable to me.
The pain in learning that I have experienced this quarter has been in the correlation between the material we read and the path of my real life. Each quarter has incorporated along with educational enlightenment, the experiential learning I have witnessed and experienced, as congruent with the course material. Now—I am not certain if this is life leading the learning process or learning that enlightens the connection to life; no matter, the results are engrained lessons. The lesson’s beyond what any instructor might imagine their influence touches the individual student. The student’s openness to education, instruction, and rediscovery of self are the elements of a successful education endeavor. But education becomes “complete” when the student becomes the teacher, sharing the wonder of new material and physical discoveries; sharing the wondrous world of critical thinking and analysis of information and of self.
“Our zeitgeist is a new (and ancient) awareness that we participate in a world of exquisite interconnectedness. We are learning to see systems rather than isolated parts and players” (Wheatley, M., 1999, p. 158).
Reference
Wheatley, M. (1999) Leadership and the new science:
Discovering order in a
chaotic world.