Lisa Borgerson, a 19-year-old Northwestern student, blames the educational system for the gaps in her knowledge (“Educa-tion gaps,” Voice, Aug. 7).
She should wait until she’s 67, as I am, and the gaps will seem like sinkholes. She has taken the first step toward wisdom by acknowledging these gaps.
She should remember that we’re all ignorant about different things. A quiet afternoon at the library turning the pages of an encyclopedia will narrow the gaps she mentions (how electricity works, who was the third president, who was King Edward), and in the process she may pick up a few dozen other interesting bits of knowledge.
I check out about 20 books a month from my moderately sized suburban library and have done so for the past 25 years. That’s 6,000 books. But the library has 120,000 books! I’m falling further behind every day.
The only thing missing from Ms. Borgerson’s education is perspective. Schools can’t teach everything. That’s why we have libraries, graduate schools, night schools, encyclopedias.
The joy of learning is not behind her, it is ahead of her. She should stop lamenting and get on with it. Education doesn’t end with a diploma.
