Be Curious
“Wonder or radical amazement, the state of maladjustment to words and notions, is, therefore a prerequisite for an authentic awareness of that which is. Standing eye to eye with being as being, we realize that we are able to look at the world with two faculties – with reason and with wonder. Through the first we try to explain or to adapt the world to our concepts, through the second we seek to adapt our minds to the world. Wonder rather than doubt is the root of knowledge.”
- Abraham J. Heschel
Jewish Philosopher and Judaic Scholar
The root of knowledge is being curious and seeing situations and things through the eyes of wonder, as a child sees them…not through the lens filtered with the prejudices and experiences of our past. As adults, we tend to have our eyes glazed over with all the problems we have faced in the past, all the crushed dreams, disappointments, all the pain, and loss. We call this experience and it means we are mature and can figure out most situations with a ready answer. This is not the way to stay fresh, growing, and learning. We can also have a tendency to look for the negative in the world around us, instead of hoping and looking for the good that inevitably exists, if we will only look for it.
We must approach all situations as if they are new situations and look for what we have never seen before. What could be considered amazing? What is unique about this time? What is good about this?
A young child is amazed with every new encounter…a butterfly, a flower, a new math concept, letters, words, reading, cats and puppy dogs. Their education happens more from their curiosity about things than from the book downloads in school. Why? Because they are curious, they explore. They try new things. They don’t know that they can’t do something. They experience life without hesitation. Their minds are eager to know why. They look for the good and want to have fun!
We need to cultivate this same attitude in our minds to look for the amazing and the unique aspect of every situation, in other people, and even in problems, so that perhaps we can see what the average person will never see. If we can do this, we will gain infinitely more knowledge. We will grow mentally and emotionally beyond those great men and women in history who have come and gone before. We will see solutions to problems that we would have stepped over, just like everyone else in the crowd. We will have healthier relationships with others, which all successful people know is key to the future.
I challenge you to look for the amazing, the good, and the unique in everything you encounter!
