Experience + Reflection = Wisdom. The Trick Is To Have Time For Reflection. And Today I Have Amtrak for Five Hours

I've lived with John Dewey at my core since I was a graduate student at the University of Louisville. Experience, I learned from reading him, is the best experience. There's no better teacher than experience and (all of us in the real world know) that the school experience is sort of a fake experience. A lot of the work we do there is not real (or relevant) to what it takes to be successful and to achieve.

Yes, you learn to play the game (and I'm still learning to do that), but the bigger learning is when you find a thirst and a drive for wanting to know. This comes when you have questions that you find yourself pursuing up and beyond the call of duty. I'm fortunate that I have set this as a mission. Siddhartha leaves his home and then moves to new worlds for enlightenment. Bryan moved from home to find the same, but he's only found himself face to face with more walls, additional questions, and several obstacles.

But, the focus remains on experience.

Today, I have a 5 hour Amtrak trip to DC (and hope that our journey is not inhabited by the fact that DC has shut down its Metro tomorrow). I look forward to this trip because I'm able to sit in one location for 5 hours with my laptop. That's huge. I get to do this on the return, too, this Friday. That's 10 hours of stationary writing time. If only I could find this time every day.

A year ago, when I was heading out to this trip I had to cancel. Henry. It was all Henry. This year I get to return, however, and meet with legislatures and senators. It's a heavy couple of days, but very rewarding and, well, educational. The experience proves worthwhile every time I go.

And with that, I'm gone.