^{It’s high time I learned some new languages.}

^{On a trail last month I met a man who could speak Raven. He was having an animated conversation with a raven who expressed an eager comeback for every statement this man made. The man did admit he had no clue what he was saying but the raven seemed to be up for the game.} 

^{This hiker related another recent conversation in which the raven continued to increase its pitch so high that the hiker’s girlfriend had to take over the conversation with her soprano raven.}

^{My attempts to speak bird, thus far, have been pathetic.  I’ve been told it’s not my fault because I just don’t have the vocal cords to make it happen and this could be true, but I haven’t tried Raven. Maybe there’s hope yet.}

^{I have a friend who can hear trees sing. She is a nurse skilled with stethoscopes and when she puts the stethoscope to the trunk she can hear the sound of the trees singing as they move liquids in their trunk veins.}

^{I have attempted to listen through stethoscopes to trees singing. I have heard the trees for a few seconds – enough to verify that it is a real thing. But I consider my successes to be seriously limited – perhaps due to my undeveloped skill of listening through stethoscopes. I’m guessing it’s a skill I could learn.}

^{I’ve had better success at smelling the messages trees send through the breezes with their scent. I’ve been told that they are also sending messages through their fungal network underground. Those messages I have not decoded.} 

^{And then there are rocks.}

^{Rocks are phenomenal storytellers. Historians, keepers of the archives. Some of the rocks I’ve seen lately have told stories of being an ancient shallow sea bottom where shrimp liked to burrow. Others tell about exploding out of volcanoes or being slowly pressed with enormous pressure underground as they formed beautiful shapes and patterns. Some tell about being sand dunes where dinosaurs walked.}

^{But with most of the rocks I encounter – I haven’t a clue what they’re talking about. And I wish I knew.}

^{It’s high time that I learned some new languages and their accompanying skills.} 

^{Do you have some languages that you would like to learn?}

^{Do you have some skills that you would like to learn?} 

^{Why take the time and effort to learn something new?}

^{For me, I want to understand the amazing created world around me. The more I learn, the more I stand in awe of creation and Creator.}

^{But there are some other benefits, too.}

^{Learning new things is good for our well-being.} 

^{Researchers find that learning at all ages can increase our:} 

• ^Happiness
• ^{Adaptability/ flexibility}
• ^Confidence
• ^{Motivation to live}

^And

• ^{Our brain benefits from the workout, developing new connections.}

^{Soul Sculpting Project: A little Step into Learning}

1. ^{Invite the company of the playful and wise Holy Spirit.} 
2. ^{Daydream, ponder: What would I like to learn about?}
3. ^{Ask: What very tiny step could I begin taking to learn _______________?} 

^{I have a friend who has worked hard at learning Spanish. It makes a lot of sense for her because she’s spending an increasing amount of time with people who speak Spanish.} 

 ^{I have other languages I want to learn. I want to learn to listen to trees, and read rocks, and speak raven.  This makes a lot of sense for me because I’m spending an increasing amount of time with trees and rocks and ravens.} 

^{What about you? What  makes sense for you to learn about?}

^{I hope both you and I can increase in our language skills.}