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Welcome to Stuff I Learned Yesterday. My name is Mandy Wichert, At 12 years old, I won a singing contest and got to sing for over 1000 people & and I believe that if you aren’t learning, you aren’t living. In today’s episode of Stuff I Learned Yesterday we’re discussing something that my kids learned about asking questions – from your Friday Forum submissions!
Friday Forum
I want you to be a part of the Friday Forum! Friday Forum is your opportunity to Share what YOU’VE learned, so that other listeners can learn from YOU. It can be a message as short as 30 seconds or several minutes long. It really doesn’t matter just as long as it’s something that will benefit others. You can participate in Friday Forum by visiting our Feedback Page or calling our voice feedback line at 304-837-2278.
What I Learned Yesterday:
Before I start, I just want to tell everyone how much I have been enjoying the Friday Forums! You guys are just awesome and such an encouragement to all of the Stuff I Learned Yesterday Community. I feel so blessed to be a part of this awesome show and am really enjoying getting to know more about each of you through your submissions on the Friday Forum. Please keep them coming! I also wanted to give a shout out to the guest hosts that aired while Darrell was out of town. Seriously great job everyone! Such good stuff!
Not too long ago, “The Shadow aka , “The Real Brian” shared his account of how a near-death experience gave him a new appreciation for his purpose in life, or at least the reality that we all have a purpose. We must have been thinking along the same lines, because as I sat down to work on this episode, I had not yet listened to his episode, but was able to immediately relate. Unlike many frequent listeners, I don’t have a lot of alone time in my car – so my kids are often also listening in with me. Listening to the show with my kids in the car is really rewarding, because it always brings up some really great topics of conversation and it’s so much fun to see what they retain and what grabs their attention.
For example, my daughter, Marin requested to listen to me “talking on the radio” the other day, so we played my life lesson show, and today she recounted…” I don’t have to get in trouble for blowing on the whistle , because Jonas already discovered that was not a good idea.” I followed up by saying, “That’s right, Marin – you were able to learn from someone else’s mistakes this time, that’s great!” To which she replied “ Mom, that’s just like what you said on the podcast! Right? The one about Bubby’s teeth?” Yeah! She get’s it…and she was actually listening! Let me tell you, sometimes I am not so sure they hear a word I say, so I’m glad to know some things are sinking in 😉
Anyway, while catching up on Friday Forum submissions, we heard one submitted by Justina about how children and everyone in general should not be fearful of asking a question – because it makes our world a little less mysterious! She spoke of her life with Cerebral Palsy and, in particular, spoke about how parents deal with their children wanting to ask a question about it. The commentary she gave was REALLY insightful and encouraging. As the show wound down, we were just pulling into the driveway. I turned around and asked my kids if they understood the content of the show or if they had any questions. This led us to a discussion about how God uniquely created each of us. How we are all different, and unique. How despite our differences or how we may look or move or walk or talk, we were each designed for a specific purpose, and that these differences were not things to fear, but things to celebrate and appreciate.
My daughter (always the one listening most intently) said, “Mommy, I don’t really understand.” I said, “Ok, Marin, what part doesn’t make sense?” And she said, “Well, I don’t really understand what purpose is. I don’t know what purpose means.” I immediately wished that I had a photographic memory and could recall the perfect definition of “purpose” for her, but instead, I thought about it and said, “Purpose is the reason that something was created. Pretend you were really hungry. So, you went to the cupboard and got out the ingredients to make a sandwich. What would you probably do with that sandwich, because you were so hungry?” She said, “Eat it!” “Ok”, I said, “Then, you ate the sandwich and you were no longer hungry”. The purpose of you making the sandwich was to satisfy your stomach and to make you not hungry anymore. Does that make sense?” “Not really,” she said with a smile. Next, I went on to say, Marin, “Why do you wear a seatbelt?” “To keep me safe,” she said. Then I asked, “What do you use a pillow for?” “To lay my head on something soft to sleep” she said. I said, “Exactly, “the purpose of the seatbelt is to keep you safe, the purpose of the pillow is to allow a place for your head to rest while you sleep. They were made for those specific purposes.’ Just like you and I and every other person was created for a purpose.”
This seemed to satisfy her curiosity at that moment, but I have a feeling there will be a few more conversations about purpose in my near future. I am thrilled about this though. She’s thinking, and considering the world around her. She is only four, but she is already tackling abstract concepts like purpose, and the fact that she was created for a specific purpose in a part of a greater plan. She’s also realizing that we all have different reasons for being here and can offer different gifts and talents. Since this conversation in our car, Marin has been more and more observant about people and their differences. She’s been asking more questions and has been appreciating our uniqueness as individuals. She’s been carefully using the word purpose more and more in her discussions with me and has been less timid in asking me to define something further when I’ve said a word she is unfamiliar with. I think the podcast she listened to, which encouraged us to go ahead and ask questions gave her a new boost of confidence to ask questions, realizing that everyone has them.
Here’s what I learned:
Questions are the keys to life and understanding the world around you. I’m so glad my daughter stopped me when she didn’t know what I was talking about and felt empowered to ask a simple question. “Mom…what’s purpose?”. It’s not always easy to ask a question, because we don’t want to seem as if we don’t understand what something means, or maybe because we don’t want to look silly or offend someone. Instead of being afraid…we should feel empowered to ask. Asking questions gives us answers and helps us to feel more informed about our world. Everyone has them. I was proud that my daughter was encouraged enough by the podcast to ask me. I think her question also helped her brother and sister solidify their understanding of purpose as well. I think the adage we learned in school was correct… There really are no stupid questions. We just have to be willing to go out on a limb and ask.
I’m Mandy Wichert, and this has been Stuff I Learned Yesterday.
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