Friday, 25 November 2011

A New Perspective

The door to my office is propped open
with a block of Icelandic lava
as soon as I arrive in the morning.

All day students and academics walk past
and I hear snatches of conversation
and gusts of laughter.
It is impossible to feel alone.

Today I heard the young Visiting Lecturer
talking to two students from his class
in the corridor outside my office.
He said "Why didn't you do it?
Were you afraid of making a mistake?
That is why we are here...
to make mistakes and learn from them.
Go away...be brave...make mistakes."

His words lingered in my mind all day.

Posted by alice c at 00:01

13 comments:

  1. The List WriterNovember 25, 2011

    It's the being brave that's so difficult.

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  2. PalawaNovember 25, 2011

    But trying to be brave is worth it...not crumbling down afterwards (from the mistake) is worth struggling through. Hindsight is valuable too.

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  3. elizabethNovember 25, 2011

    it is hard to be brave but it seems that we often do not have a choice or at least we must keep choosing to be brave...

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  4. GinnieNovember 25, 2011

    Wouldn't it be nice if the whole world had the same outlook as the young Visiting Lecturer. I agree with The List Writer - sometimes it's very hard to take the risk of making a mistake.

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  5. UnknownNovember 25, 2011

    How very wise the Visiting Lecturer is.

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  6. dottycookieNovember 25, 2011

    I think perhaps I used to be brave. My courage seems to be failing with my eyesight - or perhaps it's just that having children has made me realise just how precious and fragile our happiness can be.

    I think I need to get more sleep.

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  7. erleichdaNovember 25, 2011

    that Visiting Lecturer knows his job. and his words : )

    ReplyDelete
  8. PaolaNovember 25, 2011

    You have no idea how fitting this is for me.
    I MUST be brave and I am trying to find the strength but it's really hard for me now.

    ReplyDelete
  9. dragonflyNovember 25, 2011

    Someone once told me that there is really no such thing as a mistake. Or a coincidence.

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  10. ellenNovember 25, 2011

    Don't we all need to prop open the door of our comfort zone?

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  11. GinaNovember 25, 2011

    While I agree that it can be good to be out of our comfort zone, make mistakes and be brave sometimes, there is also a lot to be said for knowing when we can't go any further... which will probably make sense in the light of the blog post I've just written. Now I'm wondering if I'm just a coward?

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  12. Thrifty HouseholdNovember 25, 2011

    What a sensible lecturer & what lovely autumnal colours...

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  13. driftwoodNovember 26, 2011

    wise words.

    ReplyDelete

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