Daily Cascade

Temper, Temper!

Prompt:
"Education is the ability to listen to almost anything without losing your temper."
Robert Frost
Is what Robert Frost says true for you? What makes you lose your temper?

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I am not so sure I can listen to almost anything. I don't however, lose my temper easily. I mean I am not going to listen to somebody drone on and on and with repetition on the same subject. Neither will I listen to people who are pushy and want their way without any consideration for me and others. Other than that, I can listen to most anything if the subject interests me.

"To listen to almost anything" is asking for intellectual humility and I can understand that. Some people who have made up their minds on a subject won't listen to other opinions; opinions that may be better than what they have at hand. To agree to hear another opinion different than ours shows humility and curiosity.

A truly educated person, therefore, doesn't only store information in his mind, but actively seeks other viewpoints, challenges, and even criticisms. This stance in itself shows security in one's own wisdom and understanding.

As to the part of the quote that says, "without losing your temper," it refers to emotional and intellectual maturity. An uneducated response would show itself as an emotional reaction, like anger, defensiveness, or sarcasm.

On the other hand, true education in a person shows as grace and sincere behavior. It shows as patience, respect, and self-control. This is because a truly educated mind is not found in the textbooks and amount of memorized facts or in the letters after a name, but in the calmness of one's character.

I believe all this is also called emotional intelligence. Therefore, this quote is important, whether one can do exactly what it suggests or not, because we all must have seen where some public discussion ended up in shouting matches and tribal loyalties. Surely, this type of reaction doesn't solve many problems, does it!