Mistakes and Memories

If only we could learn just from books instead of our scars.

Mistakes make muscles of memory
We build up home-made instincts
Reps help us lift life's weight
beginning with studied, nervous movements
stumbling to learn, like, & finally love
mastering it, with eyes closed
then you trip as you learn something new

“The recognition of our own mistakes should not benefit us any more than the study of our successes. But there is a natural tendency in all men to avoid punishment.” - Edwin Lefevre

If only we could learn just from books instead of our scars. We have to be wounded before we press on.

Experience conditions our habits and nervous systems. Mistakes make the muscles of our memory.

We build up home-made instincts. The "reps" help us lift life's weight.

Reading books, listening to lectures, and heeding friendly advice can’t give us mastery's reflexes. At best we learn self-conscious awareness. It’s like learning a dance - in the beginning, it’s all studied and nervous movements. We have to stumble along to learn, and then like, and finally love.

“One-two-three-four, One-two-three-four. Left, left, right, left, left, right…” We are kept on our toes with the trepidation.

Only experience, through practice, pain and profit, gives us a natural and comfortable gait with the rhythms of self-assurance.

Experience helps us make hard things look easy. It never ends.

“Of course, if a man is both wise and lucky, he will not make the same mistake twice. But he will make any one of the ten thousand brothers or cousins of the original. The Mistake family is so large that there is always one of them around when you want to see what you can do in the fool-play line.”

It’s always the same rhythm of growth, there will be bumps and pretty soon you can do something “with your eyes closed”, once your body, mind and memory have made enough trips.

And then you trip yet again as you learn something new.