The Adventure of Learning

Adventure is one of my top 5 favorite words in the entire English language. It can so effortlessly define an endless range of thoughts and ideas in a mere 3 syllables, and can recall vast worlds to one's memory or imagination within milliseconds. This summer, I learned a lot about adventure. And I learned that, to me, adventure isn't always what it seems to be.

And now it's time to digress to what this assignment is all about: a talk by Elder Henry B. Eyring entitled A Child of God. In this talk, Eyring discusses the habits and qualities of good learners. He focuses on 5 specific points during the talk that can help anyone learn better. Now when I think of learning, the first thing that comes to mind is school, and that is probably about the least adventurous word that comes to mind off the top of my head. But I would like say that learning will be the experience that you make it. Here are the five qualities of good learners that he lists in his talk:

1. Good learners seek correction

2. Good learners make and keep commitments

3. Good learners work hard

4. Good learners help others

5. Good learners are able to grow from resistance

My summer yielded a long, multi-part definition of "adventure", one that I imagine will continue to grow as I advance in life. An important part of adventure that I decided was that, when you look at your experience, you have a new opinion, perspective, or experience that will affect your view of life in general. In other words you learn something. As I read this talk, I tried to consider the advice in it as the words of one wise, experienced adventurer to many younger ones. We are currently in the middle of one long adventure, and have many little adventures every day, and if we apply the council of Henry Eyring throughout our adventures, I firmly believe that our life will be enhanced through them.

I am currently keeping an adventure log for all of my particularly memorable adventures, and after reviewing the experiences I have had, I noticed that I had unknowingly applied at least one of Eyring's 5 tips. One adventure I had this summer involved a hike to the top of Table Rock. For those of you not familiar with the geography of Eastern Idaho, that is a mountain about 11000 feet above sea level. On the trail that I hiked, the elevation went up 4000 feet in 5 miles. That is a pretty rough hike for the casual hiker, and I had to work hard (3) to keep the commitment I had made to get to the top (2). It was mostly flat for about half of the trail, which meant that the other half was very steep. There were several times when I was on the verge of giving up, but at all of the steepest parts, the support from hiking buddies was the strongest. By supporting each other, we were able to become stronger, even when the mountain fought the hardest (5). However, perhaps the best part of the trail was on the way down. At that point, I had been to the top, and I encountered a number of people who hadn't yet. All of them were at different places, and many of them needed encouragement. It was very exciting to be able to help out those that needed the motivation to get to the top (4). Just in this one experience, I have pointed out 4 of the 5 points that Elder Eyring outlines, and I could go on for several more pages about the number of lessons that I learned from this experience. In fact, I will likely talk about some of them in later posts.

I am personally of the opinion that the best way to learn is through adventures. Adventures will take many forms in your life, and it is your responsibility to take them as they come, and to make the most of them.

The full text of Elder Eyring's talk can be found here.