Time to Learn

It arrived as it always has, middle week of August, big, blue and bright — clashing with the bills and junk mail: The East Meadow School District 2019-2020 Calendar and Directory.

Though there are no school-age kids at home to note the days for meet the teacher night or the marching band clinic, this document brings back a (nostalgic) time where I would transpose the applicable school events onto the big family calendar that hangs prominently in our kitchen and have me longing for the days of Halloween parades and PTA pie sales.

This calendar, in all its forms, is symbolic of learning from depicting little kindergarteners in grade school to noting the dates for adult education. But I would maintain, even if it's nearly September, that this isn't the due date for knowledge. That is, lifelong education is always on time — whether it's during the heart of autumn, the dead of winter or the rebirth of spring.

Though it can be daunting and demanding, pushing ourselves to learn something new doesn't have be on the calendar, yet is critical to our personal growth and the understanding of the world around us. For some it might be an opportunity to try out a new exercise routine. For others, it is keeping relevant by reading the latest books along with the esteemed classics. There are those who take college courses and seminars especially developed for the older learner. And there are people who rely on religious institutions to learn ancient languages and enhance bible study. So why are we naturally inclined to postpone, reluctant to try as another year passes us by?

My mother completed her Associate’s degree fifty years after her high school diploma. I gratefully completed a Master's degree twenty plus years after college, marriage and a family, thanks to a remote course of study and the availability of online education.

It's never too soon. It's never too late. No matter what date the calendar says if you want to study and learn, the time is always now.

A contributing writer to the Herald since 2012, Lauren Lev is an East Meadow resident and a direct marketing/advertising executive who teaches advertising and marketing communications courses at the Fashion Institute of Technology/SUNY, LIU Post and SUNY Old Westbury.