Wisdom does not come with age. Age comes with experiences. Experiences don’t necessarily make one wiser. One can have a long, wrong experience. I have seen senior citizens who fail in sound judgement. Neither is wisdom a product of schooling. I’ve seen professors who are anything but wise. Science is organized knowledge. Wisdom is organized life.
Don’t follow someone on account of their grey hair, neither ignore a youth on account of their age. Judge one’s advice on account of their lives. One can run her marriage the wrong way for 50 years. The fact that she’s still married for half a century doesn’t qualify her to advice you on marriage. Her experiences may be all bloody and painful and she’s encouraging you to follow suit.
I have spoken youths, couples and single ladies and gentlemen. I’ve seen people stuck in one job position till they retire. Unawares of their own victim mentality, they stagnated in their professional life.
John Maxwell says, “Experience is not the best teacher, evaluated experience is.” Seek the wisdom of the ages, but look at the world through the eyes of a child. Knowledge speaks, wisdom listens.
Be curious to learn with an open mind like a child, testing every advice against God’s word. Learn to filter stuff. Not every piece of information was meant for your consumption. Wisdom does not lie in seeing things, but seeing through things. Knowledge is knowing the right path to take; wisdom is taking it. The highest wisdom is taking the path that leads to eternal life.
There are two ways of spreading light: to be the candle or the mirror that reflects it. There are people too close to you to recognize your wisdom, but they’ll listen to a sage they have never met. Keep sharing what you learn. That will keep you on your toes to live up to what you share.
An unaccountable life is not worth living. Being accountable will keep you safe and focused.
Do not speak in the hearing of a fool, for he will despise the good sense of your words. A fool takes no pleasure in understanding, but only in expressing his opinion. A fool’s lips walk into a fight, and his mouth invites a beating. One who is wise is cautious and turns away from evil, but a fool is reckless and careless.
The fear of the Allah is the foundation of true knowledge, but fools despise wisdom and discipline. Wisdom is discipline.
– Asiya Iganya Muhammed writes from Ankpa, Kogi State
