A little knowledge can hinder real learning and discovery…..

I’ve heard Americans describe Africa and reduce the continent to three of four sentences. This is after a week-long “mission” trip to one of the 54 nations. I grew up in Africa, lived In South Africa for 35 years and have visited the continent a number of times. I don’t “know” it. I can only relate my experience of the beautiful, colorful and vibrant continent. 

I’ve heard (a few) South Africans describe the USA, reducing the Union of 50 states and 350+ million people to three or four sentences. This is after visiting Disney for three days and Epcot for one. They return to South Africa ready to report like experts on life in the USA. I have to hold my tongue! 

Yes, I’ve been to The Grand Canyon, to the view site only. But I don’t know the Grand Canyon. I looked it over from the tourist attraction site. I never stepped into, or hiked, or camped in the Grand Canyon. I wonder how long a person has to be in the Grand Canyon before he or she can claim to “know” the Grand Canyon. There is always more to discover even for the most frequent explorers. 

I think we start to learn when we begin to see just how little we know and are willing to admit it

Posted on February 22, 2026 at 8:49 am in Difficult Relationships   |  RSS feed |   Reply   |   Trackback URL