Saturday : August 26, 2007 : 10:53 P.M.

One of the greatest shortcomings of youth is our neglect of the voice of the aged. Though I am criticizing myself and speaking from the naivety of my own youth, my conviction, nonetheless, remains valid. As youths each desire which sparks hope and captivates the imagination every morning exists only in ambition. The existence of youths is anchored in intangibility. The annals of history are full of the graves of youthful ambition. For history to be rewritten (as every generation possesses the opportunity to do just that), which simply may just be the actualization of ambition, history must be learned from. Who better to learn the lessons of history than from those who have experienced them?

This paradigm is made apparent through out the whole of scripture (e.g. the entire books of Proverbs and Ecclesiastes). The example of Moses could be integral to the teaching of youth. Moses, arguably the greatest leader and/or prophet, despite his intimate connection with the voice of God, recognized his desperate need for the experience of an older person (see Numbers 10:29-32). The voice of God did not negate one’s experience and another’s need for it.

As Moses knew and youth desperately need to learn; gifting, authority, and ambition can never substitute for experience. Experience cannot be gained in any other form than through the classroom of life. Some would argue that the greatest lessons are those learned from mistakes. This teacher also teaches guilt, shame, and discouragement necessarily. If it is the experience that teaches and not the feeling, can the lesson be learned without the feeling? I would whole-heartedly argue yes. Unless youth learn lessons from the experience of others, history is destined to be repeated. And a generation will again come, dream, and go and the world will remain the same.