“It’s a total waste of time, Dad!”
Things take time
My daughter was bemoaning her teacher giving work outside the syllabus.
It reminded me of my English teacher who insisted we learn classic poems - Wordsworth, Blake and Shakespeare – also not on the syllabus..... But this was no scene from the 1989 film Dead Poet’s Society and we loathed it – dull, repetitive and a painful experience for pupil and teacher.
And yet Mr Roberts, a fiercely proud Welshman somewhat ahead of his time, was insistent and unrelenting.
“You’ll thank me when you’re older……"
So 30 years later as Spring approaches and green shoots start to poke through, yep, it’s Wordsworth and his poem about daffodils… I can still recite it, even the intonation.
So what have I learned and what’s the link to my daughter’s angst?
Well that’s the strange thing – more than the simple joy of remembering a poem:
- Work we put in today might not be visible for some time.
- Just because it doesn’t feel right now, doesn’t mean it won’t help in the future.
- Our experiences stay with us a long time and make us who we are today.
- Inspirational people can affect us, long after they’re gone.
