Musings on Highly Successful Lifelong Learners

I'm glad to hear that lifelong learning includes "yoga, cooking, dancing, and reading"--I'm all about those activities! I think movies should be added to the list however.

Libraries can provide our constituents with many different opportunities for lifelong learning. There are the traditional individual opportunities at the library--read a book, newspaper or magazine, research a new car, fill out an online job application--but I like the group learning experiences even better. Before the holidays we screened The Fire Next Time, a documentary about the Flathead that focuses on the strife between different groups in our community. After the screening at the Whitefish Branch there was a fascinating discussion about growth, streamside setbacks, sustainable logging, the changing face of the Flathead. I learned a LOT, most of which came from 25 - 40 yr. old men who either grew up here or who have worked in the northwest outdoors for many years. This was a good example of accidental learning; the stage was set but I had no idea what to expect. A very SUCCESSFUL learning experience!

And the screening has even sparked some pretty contentious comments at our weekly newspaper, the Flathead Beacon, since they ran a story after the screening at the Main Library. It's almost embarassing, these comments; I'm almost regretting embedding the link. But we can learn from these comments too.