This morning I listened to the BYU Devotional Speech given by Greg Burton, chair of the Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, on October 18th. He started his speech with a couple of experiments that I feel have some implications for us at Esperanza. In the first experiment he combined two clear liquids (A + B = C) that he told the audience the mixture would turn black but the mixture didn't immediately do so. He explained that at times we need to be patient to see the results that are expected.
Dr. Burton then did another experiement where he placed an ice cube on a pile of gray powder that exploded. He explained that at times a result happens that is completely different than what we expected.
Burton said, “While these types of experiments have surprising conclusions, such outcomes can be truly enlightening because they lead us to think more deeply and often generate important new understanding and knowledge. However, they can also be discouraging because we don’t immediately understand what has happened. In this case we may give up, and in doing so, fail to gain the understanding and new knowledge that we could have received.”
Burton also gave the example of the taking down of the Berlin Wall as an example of something happening faster than what was expected. He explained that results can happen faster or slower than what we expect. In other words, the timing has to be right.
All these lessons we can apply as we strive to make Esperanza the school of our dreams. They are also great lessons we can help our Esperanza scholars learn.
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