You’ve probably heard the phrase, “Experience is the best teacher.” Cute, but let’s be real: if experience were a teacher, it would be the kind that shows up late, never explains the assignment, and then hands you a failing grade for not figuring it out on your own. Experience doesn’t teach, it freaking ambushes and pushes you off the deep end, watches you flail, and then says, “Well, now you know.”
But as a witness? Oh, experience is unmatched.
When experience tries to teach, it’s cryptic at best. You don’t get a syllabus, there’s no office hours, and feedback usually comes in the form of embarrassment, regret, or a credit card bill. It doesn’t so much guide you as shove you into the consequences and leave you to work out the fine print. The tuition is outrageous, let’s refer to them as lifetime student loans. But the lessons? Let’s just say it’s like a recurring calculus exam, where you’ve repeated the same mistake at least three times.
Experience shines in full glory in the courtyard of your memory. It’s the all-seeing, unimpeachable witness that pipes up at the exact moment you’re about to repeat history. Thinking of dating that red-flag person? Experience raises its eyebrow: Really? We’re doing this again? Considering a new get-rich-quick scheme? Experience clears its throat loudly: Remember 2008? About to text something you’ll regret? Experience leans in: We’ve been here before, champ.
As a witness, experience doesn’t prevent the crime, but it sure testifies against your bad decisions with brutal clarity.
The beauty of ageing isn’t that we suddenly get wise and perfect. It’s that our witness stand is fully staffed. Every mistake, heartbreak, and questionable haircut sits there, arms crossed, waiting to remind us of what we’ve survived. And while we don’t always listen, the evidence is undeniable—we’ve lived, we’ve stumbled, and we’ve gotten back up.
So no, experience may not be a great teacher. But as a witness? It’s the loudest, sharpest, most brutally honest voice in the room. Ignore it if you want, but don’t say it didn’t warn you.
FrogDiva Thoughts 