My 70th birthday is in a few days. I used to think that was old age. Now I know it is. But that’s OK of course, as it beats not getting or being there. Time and age advance with nothing I can do about it,
I notice I complain more about the things I cannot control. That’s a privilege of age and should use it wisely. I am going to have to pay attention and not abuse it (too much). Far better for me to work on the things I can change. That means by what I actually take action and do.
I like the tangible. Planning wisely with my workshop, I assembled a variety of shop tools and various disciplines from woodworking, metal working, electronics and now 3D printing. It took at least a decade of preparation. So now, having nothing to do is a choice, not a curse.
I was a pioneer when personal computing became possible. Today it rules and controls everything. It’s a curse at times, I’ll agree. It has truly changed the modern world and filters down into the 3rd world.
An example is this blog. Billions of people have the power to say and publish what they want. It’s a part of the computer and “information age” curse. There is an old adage about math: Figures don’t lie, but lairs can figure. The same holds true for writing.
I write about my reality. As I age, the way I see and think about things are based on my experience. Wisdom is a gift of experience and experience is gathered through time spent doing tangible things. Not just reading or writing about them.
Passing on what is only read and not experienced is second hand knowledge. It gets filtered and diluted and is not reality. Knowledge with experience always trumps knowledge alone. Ask anyone who does hiring for anything critical or important.
Youth can seek knowledge of wisdom through study of other people’s experience. That’s communication and the reason I do so much publication on the Internet, is to share my experience. I believe strongly in study. I do it all the time. I consider study as preparation for my own new tangible experiences.
Study without first hand experience is called “book smart”. Using the Internet, it probably can be called, “information smart”. To me it is preparation for first hand experience. First study, then do.
Without the doing, there is no experience. There has to be a “do”
Mobility changes with the human aging process. I don’t “get around” as I did in my younger days. I don’t let it stop me from doing. I have plenty within reach to keep me going.
Why I write a blog at age 70 is to share wisdom, provide a knowledge base and always encourage doing, to create an experience. It’s the experience that’s most important of the three.