Nine Pin Cushions

 

I love the phrase “you learn something new every day.” To me, it means each new day is an opportunity to add to the sum of my knowledge. I like to imagine all the facts I’ve accumulated are just floating around in my head, waiting for the right moment for them to become useful. Of course, that isn’t how it works. Research shows if we don’t DO something with our new knowledge, about half of it is gone within an hour. 70% is lost by the end of 24 hours, and in a week, the number goes to 90%. It feels as if our brains are sieves, dropping information as fast as we pick it up. In fact, that may actually be a defense against memory overload. It’s helpful to know exactly where you parked your car this morning. It’s somewhat less helpful to remember where you parked it last week, last month or last year.