I am having a “Spontaneous Thought Explosion” along with A Silly Little Sparrow.

The question I am tackling is “When does wisdom kick in?”

When I think of wisdom I think not really of the Great Minds and Great Thinkers. I rarely picture someone of high degrees behind a podium making use of laser pointers and slide shows.

No, when I think of wisdom I think of this quote:

We should be careful to get out of an experience only the wisdom that is in it – and stop there; lest we be like the cat that sits down on a hot stove-lid. She will never sit down on a hot stove-lid again – and that is well; but also she will never sit down on a cold one anymore. ~Mark Twain

I also think of this man:

Wisdom is gained at the small price of experience and experience is gained at the large price of a mistake.

In the question of “When do I gain wisdom?” I think by asking the question you have already gained it relevant to your life experiences at that point. You are wiser than you were when you were a child, but not as wise as you will be when you are at the end of your life.

Unlike the cat in the quote, you know that a hot burner is for cooking ( at least that is what I am told) and a cold burner is a safe place to set down your grocery list.

You have also learned by this point in your wisdom quest that…

• Books are not only for reading but for making grand castles for action figures.
• Kisses are not only meant for intimate moments but can be used to ease the pain of a scraped knee.
• Corners are not just a blank decorating spot in your house but can become an area of great learning for the temper prone child when placed in it.
• Rice is not just for Asian inspired dishes and Cheerios are not just for breakfast, but they make wonderful art supplies as well.

When we were young and saw our own mothers perform the above things, we thought they were wise, even magical at times. But the times that we thought our mothers the most wise of all was when they proved they had eyes in the back of their heads. How did they do this feat? We now know as we have become adults and parents ourselves that they were only using the wisdom that they had gained through their experience. They knew that a soft paper rustle in the corner meant we were sneaking cookies. They knew the small squeak in the hallway meant we were using a marker on the sheet rock walls.

The best part of having gained wisdom is to be able to share it before someone else has to experience. This is why we tell our children not to touch a hot burner, don’t put something in a wall outlet, don’t lick a frozen metal mailbox, don’t try to flush your Barbie (toilets are not approved hot tubs) don’t go outside in 20 degree weather without a hat and coat…the list goes on and on of the wisdom we try to beat into their little stubborn heads pass onto our children.

Wisdom. When it boils down to it, we all have it but not as much as we will have tomorrow and more than we had yesterday.

Categories: children