In response to COVID-19 the ‘Live Up’ COVID COMMUNITY was set up to support our communities with practical wellbeing resources that can be used for these extraordinary circumstances of social distancing, community lockdown and quarantine. This article is from Sarah Chia and it is based around ‘Keep Learning’ one of the 5 Ways of Wellbeing.

Our minds are one of the most powerful and influential tools in the world and it doesn't amaze me one bit that there is no machine that can do anything better than a human person can because if there was, it couldn't have been made by a human. This is why our human minds are incredibly beautiful things.

So often we train our bodies (and this is good….I am a Physical Education teacher) and in our younger days we grow our minds at school and university, however what shocked me the most was that when I left my formal academic studies I found my mind craving to learn some new things and to lead me on a path of the undiscovered. So, I have adopted the philosophy that each year I will learn something new. Of course we all learn new things each year, we learn how to do our job in a different way, we learn about new people, new relationships but this is a conscious decision to step back from the business of life and to learn something new. Over the past 6 years I have learnt 6 new skills.

My first year I learnt how to surf and although it was a long journey, I discovered so much more than just surfing. I discovered the tranquility of sitting behind the breakers, looking back at the craziness I had left behind.

Next I learnt how to juggle. With a lot of dropped balls and failures I learned to persevere and get there. The next year I learned how to do hacky sacks so I could play with my friends. Following this, I learnt the guitar (although this one is a life -long learning I think). I have also learnt how to skateboard. This year I will learn how to knit a beanie. 

The most important thing in all of this is connecting our minds and hearts. So often we disconnect our minds and bodies from our hearts. Choose to learn something that is in your heart. It is only when our hearts are truly engaged in a process that we can find meaning and purpose in doing it. I encourage you in the next 4 weeks to think about what it is you may like to learn and have a go at starting it. 

Be gentle on yourself, give yourself plenty of time to do it e.g. a year, dedicate time to learning it, and you may like to learn with someone in your bubble too’

Here is a template to help you plan your learning