I enjoyed reading my buddy AP2’s post on The Pursuit of Unhappiness. In case you missed it, you should definitely check it out. It was nostalgic for me. I reminded me of one of my favorite teachers in high school.
This one teacher taught Maths and Physics. Nothing exceptionally remarkable there. I know. The thing that stood out about him was he almost always had the same countenance. He wore that same big smile on his face, spoke in the same mellow tone and maintained the same brisk walk. Even when things weren’t going so good for him, you couldn’t tell.
One day, I ran into him during our games period. Beaming smile, brisk walk. Here’s how that conversation went:
Teacher: Bill! You seem to have something on your mind…”
Me: I was just… Never mind.
Teacher: Oh, but I do.
Me: Why are you always happy? Why doesn’t anything bother you?
He chuckles. A brief chuckle like he expected that question. Then he says something that’s never left my mind. He said:
“If you understand the ‘why?’ you will always find the ‘how?'”
Then he walked away like we weren’t having a conversation! Damn geek!
He has since quit teaching, ventured into entrepreneurship, and is making a killing in the business sector.
Indulge me.
Why do you do what you do? What drives you? What’s your impetus?
what a teacher !!
Tell me about it!!
A great lesson from the knowledgeable teacher!
I couldn’t agree more 😊
That’s a great lesson. You’re so lucky to have a teacher like him.
Hey Luna😃
It is indeed a lifelong lesson!
Thank you for making time 😊
Teachers that speak with enigmas have a habit of leaving us with lessons for a lifetime. He was right this teacher of yours. And yet, simple as it sounds, we can often spend a lifetime not understanding our why, even when we try…but the pursuit of it is enjoyment nevertheless.
I couldn’t agree more 😊😊
I have found the greatest lessons are found outside the classroom!
You had a wise teacher who seems to have found his calling in making connections, either as a teacher or as an entrepreneur. I wonder if that is a universal calling for us? Connect the dots, connect the Legos, connect the circuits, and so on. Is this purely a human trait? I doubt it: just look at Nature! Me, I’m an artist all my life, and ‘why???’ is something I ask myself daily. The only answer I can attempt here, is that I have a compulsion to connect those meaningful moments within me to some sort of a visual image. This connection defies rationality, but still is compelling enough to give my life to. I guess connections don’t need reasons, but are excellent ways to overthink, yes! 🙂
Hey Kjensen😃
I was truly fortunate 😊
Your ‘why’ is very compelling!
“Connection defies rationality. ”
That’s powerful!
Keeping creating art!
Thank you for making time 😊
The why behind everything is as your teacher said the wisest question we should always ask ourselves.
When the answer is not something we like we should definately take action and change something. When we like the answer we find the way to make it happen.
Resently I discovered that I do not like some of my answers to those why.
Like I have a job that I don’t like, which is actually making me too anxious and physically ill just for the money I get out of it. Money is a serious answer to a why, I do not disagree, but my helth should come first.
Thank you for sharing your story. Great teacher!
Hey E. T.
Great thoughts here!
I couldn’t agree more, health should come first.
Thank you for making time 😊
I write books! I don’t have a choice, the stories come to me and I just have to get them out of my head. My latest one will be published in Paperback soon. It is available in ebook format. It is called Options, because it is about a lease-option my character, Maye West writes to get a nice young man into a house for his wife and daughter. There are some parts of it that are from real-life in that I was a Realtor and did write an option and did close it with a nice young man. It is available on Amazon. Just type my name in the search area, Brenda Colbath and it and my 13 other books will pop up.
Hey Brenda 😃
Wow!
The spirit of writing comes upon you and you surrender to its will!
Congratulations on your latest book 👏🏿
Thank you for making time 😊
Being a social worker in schools fits me because I like to make connections, help people and harness the power of multidisciplinary groupthink to co-create systemic change. It’s a passion and a muse. It drives me crazy at times, but I’d be bored out of my mind otherwise, even though I don’t bore easily.
Hey Ari😃
The work you do is so important 👏🏿
You know it’s real when it both is your passion and the thing that drives you crazy 😂
Thank you for making time 😊
What an amazing teacher! An attitude to inculcate. Thanks for sharing
Hey Parneet 😃
He was terrific teacher.
Thank you for making time 😊
If you understand the ‘why’ you will always find the ‘how’.
If you understand the ‘why’ you will always find the ‘how’.
What a man, what a teacher!
The thing that drives me is that I am crazy enough to believe that there is more to my life than what I have experienced so far. Every day I wake up, I have a hope for something better than my current circumstance. Sometimes its a blessing and sometimes it leaves me depressed – but I push forward to the mark of a higher call anyway; because I truly believe it, like math or science, it’s a fact for me.
Hey Kenneth!
This is so enlightening. The belief that there’s more to life than what we have experienced so far! That’s powerful.
Thank you for making time 😊
A great question! Thank you for asking it.
I write songs and stories because my being is incomplete when I don’t. Just the other day I realised I don’t seek to become famous with any of the books I hope to publish or the music I hope to release, I seek to connect with people and encourage them to connect with each.
Connection: it’s a more important part of our lives than we sometimes realise.
Truer words were never spoken 🙌🏿
It’s always a pleasure reading from you, Hamish!
Thank you for making time 😊