Growth is the only evidence of life. John Henry Newman, Apologia pro vita sua, 1864
I stand corrected... instantly put right by someone who evidently knows her Newman better than I do. I'm not saying who, but I think she only pretends to be Japanese when contributing here.
M.
Resurrecting Oppressed Musicians
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Musicus
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Musicus
Apologia pro vita sua - a title I remember from my mother's "heavy" shelf, and never got round to reading - so that's where I went wrong... 
Perhaps there is a deeper dimension to the earlier reference to basic science. Growth is the outcome of a set of vital processes: nutrition, excretion, respiration. If you forget the requirements for growth, get the diet wrong or provide the wrong conditions, you may be repressing growth altogether.
Some people thrive on new challenges, they get bored with the familiar, they like the freedom to do things differently every time and they grow from that, like the hardy perennial that thrives on being divided up and moved every autumn. Others need the security of familiarity in order to grow towards the unfamiliar; disturb their roots and they shrivel up. All the time, both types are doing all the mundane things to stay alive, and both may be growing but requiring very different conditions to sustain that growth. I leave you to make your own spiritual analogy.
Throwing oneself into new and uncomfortable roles is not the way forward for me. Edging slowly forward and gaining confidence on the way - that amounts to growth - taking something on that you feel you are equipped to do, not quitting when it's tough, looking forward to the next time so you can do it better, adding an extra layer here and there, no quantum leaps. I am aware that I am responding to a number of people with MD roles, and I beg to be different from you!
Of the Cardinal Newman quotes, by far the most useful is the one about change. I can vouch for the first part of it, though I'm not in a position to comment on the second part.
Dot
PS Shouldn't take the plant analogy too far - after all, it takes plants thousands of generations to adapt. We can use our powers of reason and love, we can talk and we can pray, and learn to live in each others' soil within a generation
Perhaps there is a deeper dimension to the earlier reference to basic science. Growth is the outcome of a set of vital processes: nutrition, excretion, respiration. If you forget the requirements for growth, get the diet wrong or provide the wrong conditions, you may be repressing growth altogether.
Some people thrive on new challenges, they get bored with the familiar, they like the freedom to do things differently every time and they grow from that, like the hardy perennial that thrives on being divided up and moved every autumn. Others need the security of familiarity in order to grow towards the unfamiliar; disturb their roots and they shrivel up. All the time, both types are doing all the mundane things to stay alive, and both may be growing but requiring very different conditions to sustain that growth. I leave you to make your own spiritual analogy.
Throwing oneself into new and uncomfortable roles is not the way forward for me. Edging slowly forward and gaining confidence on the way - that amounts to growth - taking something on that you feel you are equipped to do, not quitting when it's tough, looking forward to the next time so you can do it better, adding an extra layer here and there, no quantum leaps. I am aware that I am responding to a number of people with MD roles, and I beg to be different from you!
Of the Cardinal Newman quotes, by far the most useful is the one about change. I can vouch for the first part of it, though I'm not in a position to comment on the second part.
Dot
PS Shouldn't take the plant analogy too far - after all, it takes plants thousands of generations to adapt. We can use our powers of reason and love, we can talk and we can pray, and learn to live in each others' soil within a generation
NOT from Brainyquote.com!
Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote:"Unless you try to do something beyond what you have already mastered, you will never grow."