APAD: Wise as an owl

The idiom "wise as an owl" is used to describe someone who is exceptionally knowledgeable, intelligent, and insightful.

Association of owls with wisdom dates back at least to 500 BC in Greece which associated the owl with the Greek goddess of wisdom, Athena.  It's stemming from the owl's large, observant eyes and its reputation as a silent, watchful creature, and the fact that owls often observe their surroundings carefully before taking action.

- From online with editing
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Our backyard resident, Barry the owl, was calling again from the canopy of oak trees when I got up this morning. I assumed he was happy for more comfortable weather, compared with some very hot days a couple days ago.  

But what is wisdom?  To me, wisdom ain't about being good at playing games, but deeper understanding of life, the ability to make sound judgments based on knowledge, experience, etc.

When I joined a local Chinese blog/forum (to improve my Chinese) for a short period some years back, I used "有了自由和幸福，还在寻找智慧" as my posting signiture. Then one day, a person commented: "Wisdom is given, not learned".

That comment really caught me off guard, and made me wonder.  To be honest, I still don't know the correct answer today, although I do see wise people around, both in real life and in the virtual world.

If wisdom is given, then I don't think I'm among the chosen ones;   If it is learned, then I still have some hope, but probably will never catch up with the wisdom of Barry the owl ... ...

Have a nice Monday!

ps. The poem in the pic below is a famous nursery rhyme