Reflective, independent learning of mature students was the main focus of the research project PRILHE that we worked together with other six European partners over three years. One of the partner was Poland. In this article we will present one particular Swedish case, which illuminates how reflective and independent learning occures. A male mature student while narrating his story, is puzzled by a sudden reflection and deepening self-reflection on his way of learning and the possible consequences of such learning for his personal, social and working life. His discovery that learning is not an individual and unique course but a social process in its own right triggers reflection and a spontaneous or even an illuminating reaction based on biographical learning. Thus, we challenge the predominant view in contemporary higher education discourse that learners are unique and individual persons who learn in a specific and distinct way without being affected by others. We go beyond a view of a collective versus individual learning and advance the idea that learning is a profoundly social process from the very start.