"The sun shines to-day also"

"The foregoing generations beheld God and nature face to face; we, through their eyes.  Why should not we also enjoy an original relation to the universe?  Why should not we have a poetry and philosophy of insight and not of tradition, and a religion by revelation to us, and not the history of theirs?"(5).  

"But the best read naturalist who lends an entire and devout attention to truth...will perceive that there are far more excellent qualities in the student than preciseness and infallibility; that a guess is often more fruitful than an indisputable affirmation, and that a dream may let us deeper into the secret of nature than a hundred concerted experiments"(32).  

These two quotes drew my attention because they addressed Emerson's views on how we should examine and learn about the world.  I liked the first quote from page 5, because I think that it is true that in modern times, education is often centered in books about those who have gone out into the world and learned things for themselves. Students of literature read the works of dead authors.  Students of science read books about the experiments of Newton.   Students of mathematics reconstruct proofs made hundreds of years ago.   While it is necessary to gain a foundation of knowledge before beginning to experiment within a field, I think there is a lot to be said for the fact that people miss out on having a fulfilling education when they rely solely upon books and being "correct."   As Emerson suggests in this second quote, many of the best discoveries come from a guess or a hunch, not from studying what has already been determined.   What take from this is that it is important to learn foundational material and the important discoveries of the past, but it is important as well to take some time for yourself to EXPLORE what interests you.  Write something.  Do an experiment.  Sit outside and think about how things relate, or why they matter.   Not only will this make learning more fun for yourself, but you may come across interesting connections and ideas you wouldn't have thought of if you only did your assigned work.