Right now I'm supposed to be in class. I'm not. I'm at home, sitting in a computer chair, typing on a keyboard. My schedule says 2:00-3:00 pm is designated time to learn about Developmental Psychology, but Dr. Shenkman hit me with the type of mind-bending observation that made me wipe my forehead and profess, "That's it, enough school for today."

School is linked to education is linked to smarts. And yet we all know that intellect and smarts include a plethora of other areas outside of learning in a classroom. We have book smarts, but we also have street smarts, people smarts, X-Box smarts, whatever.

You can go to school all your life. Search a university catalog and see how many degrees, undergrad and graduate work, exist. You could strive to be a living alphabet soup if you so desired: Mr. Johnson, BA, MA, MS, PhD, JD, MBA, CAPS, MD.

But if you go to school all your life, do you necessarily know more at 30 than another man who, at 30, has worked and raised a family for almost ten years? Many educated men live in a sterile, insulated world while going to their ivory tower of knowledge, and while book smart, they could arguably know less than the man who has lived in the real world during those years.

This made me look at myself, which was very easy considering I was chosen as a case example in this lecture. I may not get my first real job until I'm in my late 20s. By that time, I should be damn smart, but in what ways? I'll know the facts and skills that are necessary for my field, but I must make sure to remember that during that time it's essentially as vital to live as it is to learn. Knowledge comes indirectly from books... where knowledge truly develops is from experience. We respect our elders on this principle, because we know through their years they have lived more, which implies they are wiser.

I must remember that during graduate school, I should intake as many lessons outside the classroom as I do within. Take in life, live my mistakes, question what doesn't seem right, help my fellow man, have fun. With each day I can become infinitely smarter.

I'm already wiser than the person I was two hours ago.

After lecture, I waited for Doc to pack his bag and followed him out the door. I thanked him for the talk, which he appreciated and offered deeper advice on life and school. My next class had started 10 minutes ago, but I stood in the criminology hallway learning from a man who has extensive wisdom from his life as a cop, a basketball player, a professor, a husband, and a father.

On the bus ride home, I unfolded my crossword puzzle and filled in whatever boxes I could. I was also humming a song. I was humming a Rosie Thomas melody, the words escaped me. When I got home, I put the disc into my stereo, and played the track stuck in my head. For the first time, I actually heard the lyrics.

Gradually,
I will get wiser.
I will get stronger.
I will be bolder.
I will not settle.
I will fight back.
I will stand up, or I will sit back.

Gradually, I will get older.
I will get wiser.
I will move slower.
I will see clearer.
I'll overcome.
And I'll acknowledge how far I have come.