Thursday, October 04, 2012

Friday Loose Bloggers Consortium: Life is What Happens When You are Busy Making Other Plans

I'm not sure if my take on today's topic will make sense, but this is where my brain is going today, so I'm going with it.

I was listening to a talk in church on Sunday that was given by a professor. He said that in his field, they are very interested in "incidental learning". This is what is learned unintentionally while being taught other things. So, for example, if a parent is trying to teach a child to use the potty, but swears whenever the child doesn't make it to the toilet on time, the child might learn to swear while learning to use the toilet.

In my opinion, real life is the incidental learning that happens while we are trying to create our paradigm of what life should be. Maybe it should be called an incidental experience. We focus all our efforts to make our life conform to our ideals, but in the process experience more than we planned.

Actually, I think that I have learned more "incidentally" from life than I have intentionally. While I might have intentionally had children, I have learned patience while dealing with a rude child, or tolerance while dealing with a temper tantrum. And they have learned from my behaviors. They have learned how to parent.

What have you learned in life without planning to learn? Check out how life has crept in to the plans of the other consortium members:


Rummuser, Anu, Ashkok, Gaelikka, Grannymar, , Padmum, Magpie11, andAkanksha,Will Knot, Maria the Silver Fox, Anki, Nema Noor Paul Plain Joe, and Rohit
and The Old Fossil, and our newest member MAXI! and last, but not least SHACKMAN! :)

7 comments:

Becky said...

I'd have to think a bit about what I've "incidentally" learned myself, but I vividly remember potty training our last son, quite intentionally, and discovering at the end of the process that his younger sister was potty trained too. It was a wonderful surprise!

Anonymous said...

That's an interesting take - incidental learning - hadn't thought of that in connection with the theme. But it's a good fit.
There's a lot of truth in what you say.
(It's not yet friday where I am, but post is poised.)

Maxi said...

"…experience more than we planned." Never thought of this D, but it makes sense. I think everyone has experienced incidental learning.

Blessings to you ~ Maxi

Rummuser said...

Those incidents from which I learnt were more or less all accidents really. Incidents are things that happen in normal course of life that do not surprise or shock you. Little one can learn from them. Accidents however are the ones that arrive unexpectedly and zap us.

Grannymar said...

"What have you learned in life without planning to learn?"

That nothing stays the same and that you are on your own even when surrounded by a crowd.

Delirious said...

EEK! SHackman, I didn't realize until now that I didn't have you on my list! How did that happen? I think you made a comment in the past, but I thought you were talking about what I wrote. Dang I'm getting old. I have corrected the problem, and I will now put you on my follow list. :)

Anonymous said...

I have learned a lot at certain parts of my checkered life. But particularly when I was pretty darn ill with a severe chronic illness (which I still have, but self-managed)...I learnt a big thing about "time, energy and of course the self-management" :-)