Let me begin by waxing Yogi Berra-ish, “what you know is what you know.” Yogi was a former major league baseball player for the New York Yankees. He was famous for his sayings that became known as Yogi-isms. Such sayings as “You can observe a lot just by watching.” “It ain't over 'til it's over.” “When you come to a fork in the road take it” “The future ain't what it used to be.” You might say he was the original Captain Obvious.
What is interesting though about Yogi-isms is that hidden in the obvious, we often find the profound. The topic for today’s blog came to me on a recent walk. I found myself musing on how people’s behavior, actions, and decisions are so deeply influenced by what they know. A quote I often remember in this regard is:
“like an ignorant child who wants to go on making mud pies in a slum because he cannot imagine what is meant by the offer of a holiday at the sea. We are far too easily pleased.” CS Lewis
This is why curiosity is such a valuable attribute for us to guard and nurture. All too often family traditions or beliefs, religious systems, educational experiences lock us into a narrow path that stunts our potential, limits our horizons, and stymies our soul. When Steve Jobs gave the commencement talk to the class of 2005 at Stanford, he left them with a powerful and brief thought, consisting of only four words; “Stay hungry. Stay foolish.”
It seems that staying connected to our inner-child as we age can be a valuable pursuit. As children we are so open to the world around us. We see things through the lens of wonder. There are no absolutes, only possibilities. We create imaginary worlds, cardboard boxes can become castles, and plastic figures can be brought to life.
One the greatest gifts I have been given in the past eight or so years has been the realization that real knowledge begins with the admission that we don’t know. Surrendering to that childlike wonder we once possessed, and staying open to life and all its possibilities. There is magic in this realization. By tossing off the shackles of absolutes we open the portal of expanded understanding, rather than putting a lock and key on it. Recognizing that what we know, is what we know, and not the final verdict on what we might learn or experience in the future.
So, in conclusion, I echo the words of Steve Jobs, “Stay hungry. Stay foolish” and also adding “Stay Curious”. Today I give you and myself permission to question, imagine, and break free of limiting thoughts, systems, and constructs that block us from the profound treasures that we can discover in not holding so tightly to our absolutes.
Let go and the net will appear…
Written by: Urban Shaman
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