The Gift of Curiosity
Nobody has mastered curiosity more than a child. Give a kid a rock, and some bubble wrap and their imagination will light up with possibility. From a blade of grass to their own shadow, the whole world is a child’s playground, ready to be explored, investigated and questioned. Unfortunately, as we get older and busier, our curiosity narrows to what’s practical or will get us to the “next level.”
One of the gifts that was given to me at the Modern Elder Academy was a new appreciation for curiosity as a pathway to wisdom. I learned to pay attention to passing whims and give them the attention they deserve—to become curious in places where it doesn’t “count,” so I could learn to be curious everywhere.
Of course, curiosity is many things. Mostly, it’s our ability to look at the world as if we opened our eyes for the first time. Where am I? What is this? Why is this happening? Curiosity is looking at life as a question mark or a riddle to be solved. It invites us to join hands with life and become its partner. And through curiosity, we will not only meet the miraculous but cure disease, fight poverty, make peace and create new realities. It’s also how we will choose our life’s work, fall in love, solve problems, find meaning and seek truth.
I am grateful to have been reminded that curiosity is one of life’s greatest gifts, and the engine that will help us explore the second half of life with renewed energy and purpose.
Merry Christmas!!
Bill Apablasa is a two-time MEA alumni and creator of Oxygen Buzz, where he writes about living a creative and awakened second half of life.
