When I was a little girl I had a
huge imagination. I still do. In college I stifled my imagination by pretending
to be interested in things to appear “cool”. At my college we had so many
quaint cafes, yet I didn’t spend much time in them. I was going out and
pretending to enjoy it. I remember checking out “The Brief Wondrous Life of
Oscar Wao” (incredible book) by Junot Diaz from the college library, and just
having it sit on my desk. I had every intention of reading it, but it wasn’t
until after college that I finished it. The book is so delightfully random,
which was why I enjoyed it.
There was a 1996 study involving
over 1000 adults aged 60 to 86. They were rated at the beginning of the study
based on their levels of curiosity. Some of them smoked, some of them had
cardiovascular disease, some of them had cancer. After five years, researches
found that those who were initially rated as “more curious” were more likely to
be alive at its conclusion, including the ones who had health issues. This study was published in “Psychology and
Aging”.
I just Googled “curiosity killed the
cat”. The link “Curiosity killed the cat, but satisfaction bought it back-
Wikipedia” popped up.
Curiosity makes us happier. In the
beginning of college, I would Google the same few celebrities in my free time
while “The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao” waited patiently. At that time, I
didn’t think it was cool to “think”. But I noticed I felt happier when I was
having discussions in my writing class. My friend took me to her philosophy class
towards the end of college, and it was a blast!
My life is so much more fulfilling
when I’m curious! A few weeks ago my friend told me about Graham Hancock who
lives by the motto “question everything.” When I think of computers I think of
PC or Mac. Yet the first computers were supposedly designed by ancient Greek
scientists in 205 BCE, centuries before 1946 when the world was introduced to
the ENIAC computer (which took up a whole room!). Graham is an incredibly
brilliant man, who ponders historical conundrums like the ancient Greek
computers. I’m learning more about him. He has a documentary on Youtube that’s
fascinating.
You can learn so much from Google! I
just found out what happens when you Google “Zerg Rush”… And I also recommend Googling
“interesting facts”. Discovering fun, random things is delightful! Life becomes
more colorful when we’re curious. Take it from someone who used to only watch
reality shows. I remember the only DVD I borrowed from Netflix back in college
was “Gastineau Girls”- a reality show about a beautiful mother/daughter
socialite duo. I had Netflix for a year and half in college. My current
favorite show is “Gilmore Girls”. It’s a show about a fictional mother/
daughter duo set in the town of Stars Hollow. I never watched this in high
school, so now I’m catching up! Rory is awesome (and has a great sweater
collection). Michel is blasé, hilarious, and has the best accent. I’m only on
the 3rd season so I haven’t met Lorelai’s dog yet. And I kind of
know what happens from accidentally Googling, but I’ll keep watching because the
dialogue is spectacular!
Remember how you felt when you were
a kid and discovered bubble blowing? Or found a new way to walk to your friend’s
house? As a little girl I wanted to find a four leaf clover because my
classmates were raving about how awesome it was. Not sure if I found one, but I
remember the shrieks of delight from my classmates when they plucked one during
recess. It was as if they discovered a hidden diamond mine! As adults, we’re no
longer continuously looking for four leaf clovers, but it doesn’t mean we have
to lose our fun, or our curiosity. Life can still be fun. We don’t have to
depend on our parents for allowances or car rides anymore; we can create our
futures! And yes, we can enjoy creating our futures.
You ever go to a restaurant and order something new? A few
nights ago I ordered fried ice cream. The server came back with a lighter, and
poured fire over my fried ice cream. I’ve had fried ice cream before, but never
with fire. My inner five year old was delighted as I took my first bite of
fiery fried ice cream. I used to stick with the same routine restaurants, but
now I’m open to new experiences.
Life has a routine for many people,
myself included. I cannot hop on a plane tomorrow for a 6 month Barbados
vacation. But it doesn’t mean our lives have to become a routine. Being curious helps, as long as the things we
choose to explore don’t cause us pain. The secret is to figure out what we
truly enjoy, whether it’s swimming, mathematics, cooking, philosophy, football,
or traveling. And then explore what we’re interested in. For a long time I didn’t
know what I truly liked, which was why I didn’t visit Lake Minnewaska in
college or spend time in quaint cafes. But then I realized: it’s never too
late! Now I’m enjoying Gilmore Girls on Netflix, and fascinating conversations
in pizza parlors. Time really flies when we’re enjoying activities.
Being curious, trying new things
adds spark to our lives. We’re not clones or drones; we’re individuals. Nine to
5 doesn’t have to be a life sentence. People have interesting stories. Ask your
friendly co-worker about her vacation, hobbies, favorite memories and you might
be fascinated by what she says!
My book (link below) details
my journey from severely depressed to consistently happy. I’m grateful I live
colorfully now, after spending so many years in darkness.
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