Curiosity

I remember a day in my youth. Though impulsively would not likely be noted as one of my traits, certainly curiosity is an undeniable, inalienable trait of me, even as a child. I recall a day in sixth grade on which I was trying to find the number of minutes that were in a day, and minutes in a year, and seconds in a year, and how many seconds I would live, and how many minutes we all had. It escalated until my young mind, not suited to mathematics, and not curious enough to endeavor through recess, quit calculating. I don't know where the piece of paper on which those figures are imprinted is. I probably threw it into the trash as I did with all of my school papers.

That curiosity still guides me today. Some believe there to be an impulsively in me, but I don't believe there is such, I believe that my extreme curiosity in everything is what creates this impression. I sometimes will stare at something for no apparent reason, just study it, because I am curious. I will set aside my fears and go and talk to people I don't know, with no preparation at all, because I am curious. I know well the phrase “Curiosity killed the cat.” but I also know well the portion of that phrase many leave out, the phrase by which I live “But, satisfaction brought him back.”

The only thing that separates truly brilliant, wonderful people, from stagnate ones, is curiosity. We are amazed by those people we once called idiot savants, those people who, though impaired, can do extraordinary things with their minds. What we often fail to notice about these amazing people is their curiosity. A savant who has memorized a library certainly was not pushed towards this goal by a parent, or a friend, so of course there is another driving force, curiosity.

When we hear the word genius names like Einstein and Edison, and Shakespeare, come to mind. Was it not Einstein who said “Imagination is more important than knowledge”? Einstein was a man fueled by his curiosity. He was curious as to what it would be like to travel on a bicycle at the speed of light. This sparked his greatest discoveries, his curiosity.

By choosing to live curiously, choosing to pursue those of my whims which have no root or importance more than that curiosity, I am taking the path of brilliant men. Perhaps I too will be brilliant for this, perhaps I won't, but no mater the outcome, imagine what I will see.