Curiouser and curiouser!
-Alice
“She was so much surprised, that for the moment she quite forgot how to speak good English.” It is like having the wind knocked out of you; it is being caught off guard. You are unprepared; your mind is blown. Curiosity can be so powerful and life-changing, y’all.
One can’t believe impossible things.
I daresay you haven’t had much practice. When I was your age, I always did it for half-an-hour a day. Why, sometimes I’ve believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast.
-Alice and the White Queen
Even as I planned this post, I had not considered the following until now as I write here. Was Lewis Carroll inferring a form or style of meditation that the White Queen practiced? Consider me very, very curious; I know how my mind can grow creative when meditating.
While I am not consistent at meeting this goal before breakfast, I do try my best to adopt this mindset in general throughout each and every day. I enjoy maintaining curiosity as constantly as I can. It serves as a nice reminder for me to remain inquisitive of everything around me. Should I really take anything for granted? Is it indubitable? I do not think so.
It is unwise to be too sure of one’s own wisdom. It is healthy to be reminded that the strongest might weaken and the wisest might err.
-Mahatma Gandhi
In addition to Gandhi’s sagely advice, curiosity can allow us all to ask and learn more from others, too. We do not know it all; we will not know it all. I will let you know if that ever changes, but I doubt it much. Therefore, in the meantime, consider this curiously:
Every person that you meet knows something you don’t; learn from them.
-H. Jackson Brown, Jr.
I was very impressed last night when someone random at a restaurant started to talk with me some because he said we made eye contact and therefore had to talk a bit. It amused me and amazed me. I was curious by the exchange and appreciative of his level of outgoing boldness and downright friendliness. I suppose gregarious fits well. There were plenty of reasons why we did not have to say a word to one another, but curiosity won out. We both displayed courage and stepped outside of our familiar comfort zones.
At the end of the day, what are you so afraid of? As I think back on this week, there are a number of instances where I have said something to a stranger and received no response back whatsoever. Maybe they did not hear me, maybe they did not realize I was talking to them, or maybe they did not understand me or want to respond to me. Any and all of that is perfectly fine. I choose to be curious. I choose to talk with others, complimenting what I like and asking about whatever I am curious about in that moment. I choose to no longer live in a fear state, wondering what others may think. They will think whatever they think.
I think it should not impact my decisions; I will not let it. Courage can empower curiosity. Courage will be the theme of the next cycle in case you could not already infer as much.
If I make a fool of myself, who cares? I’m not frightened by anyone’s perception of me.
-Angelina Jolie
Maybe it is wise. Maybe it is dumb. Time will tell. Stay curious, y’all :) <3