Harvest the Wisdom of Your Life, Part I

By Charlotte A. Tomaino

April 2014:  Harvest the Wisdom of your learning and discoveries. What do I know now?

In 50 years we have had a lot of experiences. Have we reflected on our choices and the outcomes? Have we learned from our experiences? What remains to learn that we haven’t yet looked at? What part of the journey still contains Wisdom waiting to be harvested? What do you know now about how you function best? What do you know now about how the world functions best? What fruits of your labors still await you for nourishment and fulfillment? What is Wisdom? What is it to ‘Harvest the Wisdom of Your Life’ and how do you do that?

What is Wisdom?
Wisdom is considered a Virtue,
which is achieved through life experience.

There are some youngsters considered ‘wise beyond their years’ or ‘old souls’ but most of us must live life to achieve Wisdom. In our day and age, Wisdom is considered a unique type of intelligence, which extends beyond factual information. Wisdom is about how effectively you use factual information. That is why Wisdom is now called ‘Developmental Intelligence’. You have to live life and have experience of the outcomes of your action to gain the type of intelligence which can later guide your efforts effectively to the desired result. That is why effective leaders are considered wise.

Wisdom is the ability to apply knowledge from a perspective of foreseeing the desired outcome and consider broadly the many factors involved in achieving an optimal course of action. Wisdom requires reflection. The immediate reactive emotion and thought is what drives the young until they learn where that impulse takes them. Wisdom has to do with the capacity to think broadly, drawing on your years of life experience and find a path of action which will be good on all levels. True Wisdom has no collateral damage in the end.

When we live with Wisdom as our guide, there is an inner peace, confidence and clarity in decisions. Wisdom is kind, generous, respectful, desiring benefit for all. Wisdom offers security and consequently is highly sought after. There is a sense of satisfaction, being respected and viable when Wisdom is contributed. Wisdom, grounded in Love, nurtures and guides to the highest possible human outcome.

What is it to Harvest?
Harvest time is when
you reap the benefits of your labors.
Harvest time is when your efforts
return to you to enrich and sustain you
and those you guide as an Elder.

Sometimes the harvest requires no effort as you pick the low hanging fruit, which you pass by in your travels. Gifts of friendship, insight, and knowledge just come to us that way. But there are times when you must climb to the heights to be able to see clearly and glean the message. Climbing to the heights is a journey worth going on.

Some harvesting requires going into the fields of the past first to sort the wheat from the chaff, cut and gather the mature plantings started long ago, taking them home to nurture and strengthen you and yours.

Finally, still other harvesting calls for digging deep in the rich soil of your life, sifting and sorting the rich roots from the rocks and weeds.

Harvesting one’s own Wisdom is a transformative process which requires conscious choice. Harvesting one’s own Wisdom is the culmination of all the years of exploring, planting, and nurturing the growth. Harvesting one’s own Wisdom is the time in life which makes all the future years more fruitful.

When you seek, find, gather,
own, ingest and digest,
you will become the person of Wisdom
and deep insight you came into this life to be.

Choose the following links to find Reflections entitled “Fields to Harvest” and “Pick the Low Hanging Fruit” to begin your harvesting.