Discussion Topic: Who/What in your life has been your greatest teacher?
Discussion Topic:
Who/What in your life has been your greatest teacher?
People come into our lives for a season, reason or lifetime, according to the poem by Aleksandra Lachut. Throughout our lives, people come and people go – soulmates on a mission for our greater good.
Some of these people teach us great and wonderful things in a short amount of time while others teach us extraordinarily difficult lessons over a lifetime. I’m curious to know what kind of teachers others have experienced in their lives. Please feel free to share with me in the comments section below your greatest teacher – whether it be a person, place, thing or idea …
Madhuri, I love that you refer to Pinni as a soulmate! I think too often people forget what an influence angels like her can be in our lives. I’ve always been connected to animals and many times they are exactly what I need when my soul is hurting. I say that I have the best co-workers in the world – four cats and a dog who follow me around all day. Right now as I’m typing, two cats and my dog are sleeping right behind the chair I’m sitting in.
For me, life itself has been the greatest teacher because it encompasses all the teachers I’ve experienced. Sometimes people ask me why we come back to live on the Earth when it can be such a difficult existence, and I feel it’s because we choose to learn – to experience something.
My life has had many great teachers … sometimes pets, sometimes people and places, and sometimes actual teachers. I can’t say enough how important it is for school teachers to actually care about their students. I had some that did and some that didn’t. If not for those teachers who did care, I might not be sitting here typing to you today.
Teachers can be good; they can also be bad. I’ve had my share of both. I don’t regret learning the lessons that were difficult to experience, though. I know they made me who I am.
Thank you to everyone for sharing! Life itself is about teaching and learning from one another. Sharing our experiences is a great way to do that.
Someone said “Life must be understood backwards, but it must be lived forwards”.
Many people have crossed my life path and taught me valuable lessons. But I must say I have been most inspired by Pinni (my pitbull dog). Our daughter rescued her from a shelter at 7mos; she is now 4 yrs old. She came into our family when I was going through adverse times with my health. I had to quit my job and my family was devastated. She taught me how to help myself when the medical system was failing. I watched her for hours, she was so unconditional and self reliant. She didn’t eat for days if she had a bad stomach or was just not feeling good. She never complained or ever worried about the past/future moment. She was always present in the now moment. She taught me that self control and self healing was possible. I was able to heal myself through yoga and meditation, discarding all the drugs. I am completely back to my health and my family is happy again. My daughter is now 21 and has turned out to be a beautiful person. My husband and I are closer than ever. We believe Pinni is def our soul mate as she must be the soul of the second child we couldn’t have.
She continues to amaze us each day and all our friends/guests love her. Funny, Gurus come in different shapes and forms as long you want to learn .
I love your site Rev. Sheri-you too are a great teacher. Thanks
-MP
My greatest teacher has been my soul.
My soul – now that I know how to listen to my inner voice – guides me (even when my ego says otherwise), protects me, encourages me and chides me at times when I have needed it.
My biggest lesson in life has been to find my soul, my Higher Self and now that I have, I am facing the greatest crisis of my life, reborn. As I read today ‘If God brings you to it, He will bring you through it’ and as our soul is a fragment of God then surely the message is clear.
Sure, me meet many people in our lives who along the way help us, even challenge us, but our greatest teacher is our Higher Self and that as the the Lord Buddha says ‘Enlightenment lies within us all.’
I have to be honest and give the yin and yang. My father taught me who I wanted to be as a human. My mother taught me who I did not want be as a woman and human. Two of my children are inspirational. My oldest is not only pursuing his dream career but succeeding beyond and above. My next oldest for honouring his committment to his country under unbearable circumstances, and finding a way to committ himself to making a difference in other peoples lives for the remainder of his life. My only daughter for reinforcing what I learned from my mother. My ex for teaching me what a real relationship should never be.
These are some great teachers! Anyone else care to share theirs?
My mom was a single parent for some time, too. It’s not easy. Cherina, your daughter sounds absolutely wonderful. Isn’t it amazing how incredible children can be sometimes?
My hero was my dad. He, too, was a single parent after my mother died. I was only 12. It’s hard to raise a teenage daughter all by yourself, but he did it. Thankfully, he’s still with me and still teaching me. I’ve been through a nasty divorce, and he was there. He’s helping me start my own business right now. I don’t know what I would do or even be without my dad.
My greatest teacher was my mother. Seeing everything she went to being a single mother speaks volumes to me about her love for my brother and I. Even after she died, I know she is with me.
I would have to say my greatest teacher is my 8year old daughter, she is that person that see’s the true me ALL the time, there is no hiding it from her, no putting on a brave face when im having a sad day and no fobbing her off with a silly excuse as to whats wrong. She has taught me to worry less, play more and not care what anyone else thinks of me and shes 8! Sometimes i wonder who looks after who in our relationship and i would have to be honest and say its probably 50/50 :)I know when im getting caught up in the illusions of life by the way the relatonship changes between us when i do, luckily i have now managed to be more aware of it and i realise then that its time to relax, meditate and re-connect with myself and her. A true blessing.