The old adage “You can’t teach an old dog new tricks” was disproven on a regular basis by a dear friend of mine named John Fudge.
Born in Venezuela to British parents and schooled in England, Mr. John Fudge was a gentleman in the original sense of the word.
I had the good fortune to meet him in Clearwater, Florida in the early 90’s and we developed a lasting friendship over many meetings where he shared fascinating stories of his adventures as an RAF navigator, as a young businessman in Venezuela, working in Washington, D.C. and Los Angeles.
He enjoyed a nightly drink of macchiato lacrima – an espresso shot with a small dash of milk, carried a PDA and/or a cell phone ( back when this was cutting-edge ) sent daily email to a wide corps of close friends and walked 5 miles out to a nearby mall & then back, several times a week.
An old dog — ? Hardly.
His viewpoint wasn’t old. He mastered the ability to live life in present time, while continuously creating a future. And he could listen. It really didn’t matter if someone was telling him about something that he would obviously know much more about. He would grant that person as much beingness & importance as anyone else and listen intently to all that they had to say. A true gentleman.
So.
I recommend making it a daily policy to learn something new. It also helps to listen to ‘old’ people.
Some of them have learned more than the rest of us possibly ever will.
Another Day in the Studio 