Day one in the gorgeous Island Gran Canaria. I walk up the steps into the Hotels reception where I am about to purchase my months worth of wifi. I pick up two leaflets whilst I wait. Wifi sorted its time to go back down those multiple steps and get some vitamin D.
There’s a young girl opposite me, she keeps observing. She leaves for a short time and re-appears again. She stands hovering and staring at me, I ask her if she’s ok? She replies that her sun lounger isn’t facing the way she would like it to (mine faces the sun, not the pool). She wants her sun lounger to face the same as mine, to also be next to mine. Politely OFCOURSE I moved it for her! Then I continue to apply my sun cream, her big brown eyes mirror my moves, from my arms to my legs. She watches and copies. I am now lay down sunbathing, I can hear little mutters from this little young lady, uhhhm, I turn to me left to find she has picked up and is also reading the exact same 2 leaflets I have. Yes its now clicked for me lol. She begins to go ahead with conversation about the dolphins she has seen on her trip here in Gran Canaria. She likes animals, she ‘LOVES’ cats and Dolphins. She thinks they are beautiful, she’s been mothering the wild cats here on her trip. She wants to be an artist, for a 7 year old she is very bright in her mind. She feels the same about the place as I do, she loves the way mountains look, I do too. She drew a picture of the mountains and was kind enough to show me, her drawing isn’t finished yet she adds, it needs more work to it. Bless her.
Age doesn’t separate people, the curriculum level of that of societal values is what does it. But what does it really mean? This 7 year old sees the beauty and life in a place just as my 24year old self. Knowledge is a way of life, we are all forever learning. When we have a break away is any of that important? What about freedom? Happiness, becoming strong minded and confident. Should these be at the forefront of our curriculum? Well…Yes!
Children are forced into schools that dull their creative souls. They are taught the values of money and what grades you need to achieve to receive the highest pay. The smarter children are usually more wealthy. Yes, I know here we go again, money money money. Follow our rules and you’ll be rich kids! You have to follow the rules to do well in life, to be great, to be wealthy. Yet what they aren’t teaching them is that a lot of the major achievers in our world didn’t have much of an education at all? They just had a strong desire for one thing, their mission was to fulfil that. All they did was focus on it so much and keep trying with their own hard working abilities to put that in action.
Schools make you believe that life is hard, which it definitely is if what you’re learning has no interest towards you. The biggest creators only learnt what they wanted to know, they didn’t waste time on years of extra education to be where they are. They learn what they would like to know, with the majority of them actually being self taught! This actually led them to be so different that it has inspired multiple generations, whether its art or science, we still try to copy these magnificent minds and their amazing working rhythms. They created their own work. They are passionate about what they do, they just really enjoy it so much that they never stop. For many, even whilst lying in their hospital bed find some form of energy to keep creating. Creators don’t see what they are doing as work, they don’t think ‘money’, its actually like ‘me time’ therapeutic switch off. What is the one thing that truly makes you happy? Learn what you want to know, try with it, the rest will come later.
Trinity retreat 