Never too Old to Learn

Today, my notable quote comes from my grandma, Bernadette Weber who was born in 1903 and lived to be 95 years old.

In those 95 years of her life, I can recall a few notable things she said, but I chose to highlight, “We’re never too old to learn.” 

Grandma was the oldest of 17 children and at an early age learned how to butcher and dress a chicken, bake bread and grow a garden. Two of her siblings died as infants and Grandma once told me that she also learned how to prepare a body for burial. 

Though Grandma’s formal education ended after the 8th grade, public education back in her day was far more rigorous than it is today. Her formal education readied her to live intelligently in the world as it was and to continue learning how to live as the world turned.

Grandma started out living in the country where most of the rest of the population of the United States lived in the early 1900s. Like most everyone else, her family relied on the food they grew to feed themselves. She moved to the growing metropolis of Lincoln, Nebraska when she was in her mid-forties. By then she’d already raised her two oldest children. Her two younger kids were raised in the city.  

When I was born, Grandma was already in her fifties. Though as a little tyke, I got to sleep over at her house with my cousin, I was a teenager before I realized how much I admired Grandma. 

After Grandpa died, and I became a teenager, Grandma became a major influencer in my life. She guided me, gave me acceptance and a listening ear during a very crucial time in my life. 

Spending time with Grandma meant driving her to the grocery store, sitting on her front porch swing for in depth conversations and having a meal with her.

Grandma lived long enough to experience some minor and major inventions that changed the world. She paid attention to some of those things and others she did not. 

She never flew in an airplane nor did she learn to drive a car. She loved watching Johnny Carson and All Star Wrestling. The way the world turned did not scare her nor did it throw her off balance.  She never felt the need to go to work, but instead her main work was making a home. 

I do not remember the context of when she told me that we are never too old to learn, but she never said anything she didn’t already believe to be true.

Grandma learned to live in an ever changing way without allowing the world to change her into something she was not. 

The last time I saw her was in 1993. She’d lived long enough to see me grow up, become a wife and mom and to meet my three sons.

She’d grown old, but not too old to learn. Her oldest son had convinced her to take a road trip  and to wear pantsuits.

Why Bother?

Why bother believing that we’re never too old to learn? We don’t stop learning because we grow old. We stop learning because we believe we’re too old to learn.

P.S.  I wrote the story of my journey to forgiveness for those who need clarity when it comes to understanding forgiveness. You can find A Heart’s Journey To Forgiveness at Redemption Press and Amazon.