Lessons from Felix

Felix was a brown stuffed rabbit who traveled the world with a plaid suitcase and matching bowtie. During my first year of school, Felix taught me about many of the cultures of the world, from France, to Egypt, to Australia. Felix taught me that coral from Hawaii was an actual living organism! Imagine that! A cold hard lump that resembled a rock was actually a living thing. Incredible!

 I was introduced to Felix on my first day of kindergarten, and since then I have never ceased to have a feeling of wonder and awe when walking into a classroom. Each and every day of my 15 years of education has brought me at least one incredible new discovery, and it all started with that brown stuffed rabbit.

Since Felix, I have learned a great deal, and my curiosity has flourished. I learned about the worlds of Ernest Hemmingway, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Mark Twain and Toni Morrison who taught me how to express the inexpressible. I learned how Van Gogh turned his torments into sorrowful beauty, with spectacular whirls of color and rage. I learned that trees created the oxygen that we breathe and was forced to question the reason as to why we cut so many of them down. I learned that only women could give birth to babies (which was a shame because I was going to force my future husband to carry a baby for 9 months in his belly).  I learned that the human heart beats and average of 3 billion times over the course of a lifetime.

3 billion moments in a single human life. 3 billion- a number so large that the human mind physically cannot comprehend its magnitude. In the span of 3 billion fleeting moments are millions of opportunities to be amazed, to marvel at and to admire. Getting an education is how we take full advantage of these 3 billion moments.

 I believe that an education is the only easily accessible place left for us to explore our curiosities and then flourish from them. Through my education I have learned to have awe. Through my education I have learned to constantly question, and to reflect on all aspects of my life. I have learned to look beneath the surface and consider multiple perspectives. I have learned to appreciate the beautiful because it is beautiful and the ugly because it allows us to see the beautiful.

It seems to me that the institutions that used to bring us awe, inspiration and wonder are slowly dying. Museums, operas, art galleries, libraries- all seem antiquated and therefore not worthy of our precious and limited time. However, we have 3 billion moments on this earth to feel the pleasure of curiosity and to grow from it.  School is where we can take full advantage of those 3 billion fleeting moments. School is the only place where we can grow from the lessons of a brown stuffed rabbit with a plaid suitcase and a matching bowtie. 
By Ashley LeSage