12 August 2008

Run for cover

I find it difficult to accept unsolicited advice. My earliest recollection was one summer in my youth when a kid from across the street, a year my senior and the neighborhood blowhard, said "Let me give you a bit of friendly advice for the sixth grade....".

Unfortunately I have been not only the the recipient but also the giver of such at times. Perhaps as one ages it becomes more difficult to keep all this pseudo-wisdom safely locked in the brain.

It's not unlike the feeling I get when peeking at a neighbors scrabble tiles and the struggle to keep my mouth shut when a 50 point word is jumping out of their tray into my face. "Helping" only makes one feel smart and smug, it does nothing for other players.

A self-determined solution to a problem, even if a lousy one, is better than a perfect one constructed by others. You learn by solving problems for yourself.

No comments:

Post a Comment