By Gini Dietrich

I just finished reading Ender’s Game. Wait, that is a lie. I just finished listening to Ender’s Game (I’ve discovered Audible while I ride).

It wasn’t my favorite book, but it definitely kept my attention through more than 220 bike miles. That said, there was one thing that really bothered me about it. Here are these genius children who are brought up in battle school, some as young as six years old, and they’re taught to fight the enemy, to anticipate what the enemy might do, and how to win.

I’m not against winning. I’m one of the most competitive people around (ask Jason Konopinski how that’s going for him). But what bothered me is these children – genius or not – have the perspective of 40-year-old adults. The kind of perspective that only comes from living life. It’s not something (unfortunately) that can be taught. You can’t read about it in text books. You can’t learn it in simulation. You have to live it. (more…)