Friday, July 18, 2014
It Takes A Lifetime
According
to legend Pablo Picasso was once asked to draw a picture on a
napkin and promised payment for his impromptu art. Picasso whipped out a pen and
quickly sketched a woman's head and shoulders.
He then handed his creation to the man who made the offer and said, “One
million dollars, please.”
“A
million dollars?” the guy exclaimed. “That only took you thirty seconds!”
“Yes,”
said Picasso. “But it took me fifty years to learn how to draw that in thirty
seconds.”
Whether the story is accurate or not,
there is a lot of truth to the statement.
It takes a lifetime to learn some things; especially when it comes to
wisdom and values.
Pablo Picasso was born in Spain. His father was a painter and a professor of art, and he taught his son from a very young age. Eventually others recognized his genius. Today Picasso is one of the more popular icons in art today. In 1932 he painted "Green Leaves and Bust". It was part of a collection owned by Mrs. Sidney F. Brody which sold for $104,482, 500, in 2010, at an auction at Christie's in NYC, making it the most expensive painting ever sold at auction. (JustLuxe) He became a master, but it took him a lifetime to get there.
This principle explains why we would be wise to listen to
our elders. Some people actually learn
from their mistakes. Listen just to see if maybe somebody's bumps and bruises
produced a little wisdom. This wisdom is more valuable than one might imagine.
This lesson has been hard-learned throughout world history. For example, the third king of Israel was
Solomon. He was considered the wisest
man who had ever lived and his kingdom was incredibly prosperous. When he died his son assumed the throne, but
instead of taking the kingdom forward on the advice of his father's counselors
he chose to listen to the young bucks.
He tanked; an all-too-familiar pattern.
Not everyone who is older is wiser, but so many of our
elders have more to offer than we might suspect. If you are in need of advice, find someone whose
life exhibits goodness and see what they have to say. Seek counsel in places like the Bible, where
God, the ultimate elder, shares his wisdom.
Such insights are treasures; after all it took them a lifetime to come
to those conclusions.
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