We are told that our elders hold wisdom (and having just reached AARP age, I certainly hope so). But at the same time, as people get older, many become more resistant to change.
We are told that wisdom comes from experience, but some people learn nothing from their experiences.
How do we discern wisdom, then?
Wisdom doesn't bubble up out of fear or anger, although fear or anger may make us reach for wisdom. It rises from the still pool at the center of our being. It may goad us to act or ask us to wait, but it does so with a sense of what has gone before and a great deliberation. The answer it gives is grounded in humankind's best nature, deep in understanding.
Do not mistake wisdom with the resignation of "things have always been this way", or the self-righteousness of "things have always been this way". Wisdom is not about preserving or giving to the past. Wisdom is about learning from the past and using it for advancing a life, a people, a world into its future.
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