Learning Through Joy

It is up to you whether you learn through joy, or through pain.
- Marianne Williamson

I.

Across time, life’s lessons seem repetitive.

Wisdom, widely available and accessible, ignored by us.

Examples, from different sources, ages apart:

Do Nothing

• Be still and know that I am God. - Psalm 46

• Act without action. - Lao Tzu

Let Go

• The wise one lets go of all results, whether good or bad. - Bhagavad Gita

• We must let go of the life we have planned, so as to accept the one that is waiting for us. - Joseph Campbell

II.

It seems life teaches us the same lesson, again and again, until we learn it.

Perhaps, our experiences repeat because we:

• Ignore timeless wisdom;

• Succumb to desire;

• Avoid discomfort; and

• Fail to reflect on our experience.

III.

When we choose to deprive ourselves of ancient wisdom, dismiss others’ experiences as insignificant or inapplicable, and “drive forward” without reflecting on our experience, we tempt life to teach us the same lesson again.

Our opportunity to learn through joy - whether from ancient texts, others’ experiences, or our own insight - is abundantly available, if we are willing to listen.

IV.

How may we begin to learn through joy?

Perhaps, our first step is to dispel our beliefs and desires. Specifically, admit our ignorance, and surrender to what may arrive for us. Humbling ourselves, rather than tempt life to humble us.

Our next step may be to consistently practice:

• Asking for help (humility);

• Listening generously (learning);

• Asking curiously (ignorance);

• Developing our ability to listen and follow our intuition (surrender);

• Noticing positive feedback loops in our life (what to move closer to); and

• Examining repetitive cycles in our life (what to move further from).

And perhaps, with God’s grace, by humbly opening ourselves to what life offers, the door to learn through joy may open for us.