Learning From Everyone

"We do not learn only from great minds; we learn from everyone, if only we observe and inquire."

-- C.A. Doxiadis

I have no idea who C.A. Doxiadis is or was. I don't even know where I first encountered the quotation above. But I do know that I learned something from him or her. I learned the value of observation and inquiry in the wisdom-seeking process. And I learned, too, that everyone holds at least one piece of this puzzle called truth.

As I think back on my life so far, I realize that I've received important lessons from janitors as well as school teachers, from little kids and dying geriatrics, from homeless people, swamis, poets, priests, neurosurgeons, ice cram vendors, and life guards. People in all walks of life have taught me incredible things, and the only tuition I had to pay was my attention.

And yet I'm sure that I've missed more lessons than I've received, and that many I did receive passed through me faster than cheap beer. I need to keep reminding myself that everyone is a potential teacher, and that wisdom is, indeed, everywhere.

So, today, why not play the Hidden Teacher Game? See how many lessons you can learn from unexpected people in unexpected places. Lay down your prejudices, transcend your unconsciousness, and be fully present to the fountains of wisdom that are spring up all around you. Learn the lessons to be learned. Then bow deeply, if only in Spirit, to your teachers one and all.