I recently connected with one of my teachers from high school. She was one of those people who went beyond 'teacher' and turned into a trusted friend. And I know that I wasn't the only student of hers to feel this way.
In our email conversations back and forth, I mentioned that I wasn't living the life I imagined for myself 20 years ago, but that I'm probably the better for it because of all the cool things I've done instead.
She replied with this:
It is important to you to learn about yourself and the world. You didn't see this in yourself maybe when you were 16, but most people don't. But the seeker comes to respect her own curiosity, her own hunger, as she goes along. Look at all you've done! You just wanted to find it all out for YOURSELF, and not be confined to a syllabus in the process.
I wish I could have had my teacher around these past 20 years because I know she could have helped me 'right my rudder' whenever I felt off course. But I'm thankful to have found that now.
I still feel the pangs of restlessness. I don't think it will ever go away. But the trick is to turn that restlessness into curiosity and from there into making new experiences. I will never stop learning, never stop seeking.
Well put and a good reminder.
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