As is my usual game, I decided, on the spur of the moment, to go for a walk last night.
I ended up meeting and walking one with one of my residents between the two freshmen dorm complexes. After we parted ways, however, I felt like I wasn't done yet. What, I thought to myself as I headed west through Helaman, can I do to make this memorable?
All of a sudden, I had it.
I started going through each and every single one of the dormitories, stopping at the front desks and asking the RAs behind them to enlighten me. I actually picked up a couple of friends along the way, so the three of us would swarm the desks, seeking help on our quest.
"What one piece of general advice would you give anyone who asked on the topic of life, the universe, and everything?" I would say.
"What problem are you having?" the RA would ask. "So I can give more specific advice."
"I got 99 problems, but I solved them all." I said. "So now I just need some generalities."
These are the answers we quest-seekers received:
Humor is better than wisdom.
Don't take chemistry.
Always be teachable and willing to learn.
Always read the footnotes.
Just smile.
Always go on as many adventures as possible.
Find out who you are and what your identity is.
All you need is love.
Never stick your head in a mailbox.
You can sleep when you're dead.
Think, don't smoke.
It was a great experience because I not only was able to strengthen my friendships with my friends, but also actually receive some surprisingly deep thoughts to ponder, along with the ... uh ... others.
So, my challenge today is to do the same! Maybe not ask for general advice, but ask others what they think about something. Try to understand their viewpoint. See what you can learn from them. And I promise you, even if the advice itself doesn't stick, the experience will.
I think this is one of my favorites as well. I think I'll make a point of soliciting pearls of wisdom from other people. I love the list your RA friends generated.
ReplyDeleteBTW, #9 sounds like it was born of experience! It reminds me of when President Hunter was asked to share some sage pearl of wisdom and he replied with something along these lines: Keep the shower curtain inside the tub.
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