Remember the people who knew all along?

When I was in middle school, there was a kid who would meditate under the tree at recess.

He was bullied mercilessly.

Looking back, he was way ahead of his time. I remember asking him about it and him saying things that I would not understand or believe until 20 years later.

I wonder how many people who are around me now — entirely wiser than me — and I can’t see them for my own ignorance.

Ralph Waldo Emerson comes to mind:

“In my walks, every man I meet is my superior in some way, and in that I learn from him.”