Act According to Your Real Nature: Wisdom - Essay Example

 Act According to Your Real Nature. “Wisdom” “Wisdom” is often a rare phenomenon in most people. To act wisely at all times under varying situations is often a challenging task. To be considered wise, one has to portray greater height of humility and be able to make decisions that epitomize a rational member of the society. “Wisdom,” what lies deep beneath the simple phrase that matters so much in life? Despite frequently hearing my father throw in “knowledge is wisdom” in his conversations with us most of the time, I could not bring myself to decipher the magnitude of that short sentence. The mystery that underlies the simple phrase has for a long time been a puzzle to crack for me. Two years ago I was at a crossroad in my life. I was preparing to leave my family in China for the first time in pursuit of further studies in the United States of America. I knew that leaving my family to find myself was inevitable because it was part of the circle of life. I was now of college age and I needed to find the answer to the question “Who am I? What am I? Is who I am truly my nature or the nature that other people have thrust upon me?” Something was nagging me. I was momentarily out of the real world as my mind wondered in search the hard puzzle that I could not probably crack alone. “Hey, wake up,” was my private tutor’s voice that undoubtedly brought me back to my sense. As he drew closer to me, he softly asked, “Do not keep it away from me. A problem shared is half solved.” I knew I could not resist opening up to him. He had always been good to me and so considerate that I had always loved to hear his life concepts. Even at my tender age, I knew that he would be able to understand and help me far better than my parents because he would not scoff at my thoughts nor tell me that I will learn about everything in due time. We sat in our family sitting area that last afternoon of our session, eating a snack while I opened up to him about all my doubts and fears regarding the upcoming new chapter in my life. As expected, he sat in rapt attention, listening to me and nodding his head to let me know that he understood what I was going through. He never interrupted me and allowed me to air all of my fears and questions before he spoke. And when he did speak, he indicated to me the importance of having positive priorities in life and the significance of being fair-minded and focused in all my undertakings. His insights into this matter gave me a sense of courage and positivity in everything. I considered the advice that he gave me at the time priceless. In fact, it is his words of wisdom that have helped me grow and develop as a person even today. I will never forget what he told me because it became the platform and basis for everything that I do in my life today. He told me: Always remember that there are three things that will help you find yourself in this maddening world of noise and unfair expectations coming from those around you. First of all, always speak according to the occasion. If you have nothing nice to say about something, it will always be best to bite your tongue. The less you say about a topic of occasion, the more intelligent you will appear to other people. Second, controlling your anger and using logical words instead of hurtful actions will always be of a great benefit to you as people will come to respect you for your self-control. Third, acting in accordance with your real nature is the most important thing of all. But, your real nature must be displayed in a civilized and educated manner for it is by your real nature that all the people you meet throughout your life will judge you. He explained to me that despite my unconsciousness about the real me, being thrust into the world to deal with its realities and without the safety net of my parents and their money would quickly help me figure out who I really am, how I really deal with things, and what my true nature as a human being was. Here I am a few years later, finally coming to a full understanding of what my true nature as a human being is. My tutor was right, I learned all about myself and my true inclinations in life by living free of the expectations of other people and using the opportunity I was given to study abroad and discover things about myself that I would not have discovered had I remained in China under the care of my parents. The exposure to other cultures educated me on the ways of others and helped me learn about the true nature of those around me and how to best handle unique situations that I come across in life. For instance, I learnt about cultural relativism and diversity. Additionally, the uniqueness in diversity across all cultures taught me the richness that comes with it, and how it fosters interactions, tolerance and cooperation among various individuals and nations. In appreciation of this diversity, I learnt about understanding people from other cultures. In the U.S., I learnt that no culture is superior to the other and that for a peaceful coexistence; people must learn how to accommodate one another’s culture. In a nutshell, I learnt that cultural diversity is an important element of the society. Reflecting on my tutor’s advice, “Only speak when you have something to say and not because you have to say something,” I know realize that wisdom was his main theme, an element that defines who and what one really is. Surely, wisdom is a critical element of an individual that determines oneself and revolves around knowing what and when to speak as well as not feign your real identity. “Wisdom,” as simple as it sounds was a life-changing driver for me. I can now easily answer the once perturbing question, “Who am I?” Read More