I left school the week I turned 16, and started work at the local pharmacy the next monday. At college I was in the "top stream",studying latin, french etc etc - which I enjoyed, but it seemed to be taking me nowhere. My classmates were focused on university degrees , leading to careers as teachers , lawyers , accountants - all I wanted to do was escape from the classroom. My "career path" zigzagged through pharmacy, a postie run, 17 years as a house painter and raising four children. And now, finally, I can see the benefits of education. Don't get me wrong here, I have no regrets about either leaving school early or the way I've spent my time. But I am envious of the self confidence which education bestows on people. If someone teaches you something you assume that it's true, so you believe it and are confident in upholding that belief. You don't need to learn by your mistakes, the information you require has already been tested and presented to you. As an artist this can be especially important- self doubt is often peeping out from behind my easel and I admire the self confidence of those who have been educated in the rights and wrongs of my trade. But that self confidence can also be a trap for the unwary!
Anyhow, here I am, learning as I go, hopefully learning from my mistakes , delighting when I stumble on a gem of artistic wisdom which provides an answer to  a problem. Others have been generous in sharing their wisdom with me  - they have been my teachers, I guess, and this is one school which I won't be leaving early...