What We Didn't See Before

I asked my students another name game prompt: "What's one thing you look forward to when you wake up in the morning?"

My favorite answer? A student says simply this: "I look forward to what I'm going to learn that day. I look forward to learning something new."

Something new. Something I didn't know before or see before. 

Can you imagine the possibilities? Can you imagine this sentence as a cure for boredom and despair? I think of the pleasure of making new connections and of learning something new. For me, it's learning new verbs and their origins. It might be experiencing something new--a new food or drink or a new television show. It might be learning something new about my daughters or husband. It could include learning a new game, reading about another country, or investigating something in the natural world. 

I think about waking up with the energy and commitment to learn something new. I think about how, when evening comes, I would keep my commitment to learning something new by deliberate attention to some kind of phenomenon or research. 

I get excited just thinking about tomorrow and what I might learn. I'll let you know.