I have in mind a project for my garden that will involve lashing together a framework of dried bamboo to create a minimalist structure for pea vines to grow on. I think I know the best knots to tie for the job.

Who am I kidding?  There will be knots involved, but not any knot that I could name nor one that is designed for lashing together pieces. The lessons I learned as a kid in scouts and as a dad with kids in scouts are long since forgotten and were never mastered in the first place. It looks like I will be doing some searching for videos to learn enough to do a reasonable job.

Life is about learning things anew or renewing lessons through repetition. I am okay with that; I embrace it with my dad’s words in my head. He has been gone for way too long to be able to remember his voice, but his words are enduring.

Whenever I encountered a task or project for which I had no, or insufficient, knowledge or skills, he would say, “Ya ain’t gonna learn any younger.”

Part of the beauty of that was the encouragement to learn then and there. There is no time like the present to learn. The message is also timeless. No matter our age, there is much to learn and we won’t be able to learn it at a point younger than the moment we are in. Be it knowledge or a skill, there is no way to gain it anew sooner this moment.

I will learn enough to complete my project, though I doubt that I will have the knot-tying skills of my sons. Frankly, I don’t care to, but I do want to learn enough for the project that I have in mind.

There is always something to learn anew or learn more about than you currently know. Learn, learn more, learn again…starting now. You won’t have a chance to learn when you are younger than you are now.