ying yang curious cat painting by Adriana at Gatos ilimitados
Recently, someone took the time to inquire about me and asked, “What is your driving force in life?”
It took a few moments of contemplation before coming up with my response which was curiosity!
I am not much of a netflix binger because:
a. I don't have a lot of free time to sit around and tune out
b. I am pretty high energy so I would much rather be moving and shaking than be stagnant and
c. I am too curious so I prefer reading to learn new things, writing to express an idea, creating in some way whether it be with my thoughts or with my hands, and experiencing life on my own rather than watching it on a screen
I will say that every once in a while, I will hear about a netflix show that sounds intriguing enough to make a couch commitment of at least 1 to 2 episodes a night 4 to 5 times a week. Thus far, these shows have all been in Spanish and the last one I felt borderline addicted to was called El Gran Hotel (the Grand Hotel).
This show required dedication since:
1. it was really long and drawn out
2. there were hundreds of twists and turns with heightened moments of drama and
3. the emotions displayed by the characters ranged from: love, shame, passion, anger, excitement, betrayal, hopefulness, envy, surprise, rage, joy, sadness, curiosity, and despair. It was an intense roller coaster ride of emotions that kept me on edge, but always wanting more.
In this show, I heard the phrase spoken in Spanish while subtitled in English- “La Curiosidad es Todo”, “Curiosity is Everything”. The interesting part about hearing this on the show was that in the last few months before watching it, I had been describing mindfulness with my clients as the practice of being curious, open, and flexible. There was that word again, curious.
I explain to people I work with that being curious means a lot of different things. I encourage them to get curious about their own thoughts, feelings, and behaviors in order to better understand themselves and relate with their self in a more loving, gentle, and compassionate way. In relating with others, I try to motivate them to feel curious about the other person's intentions, feelings, and thoughts so that they are perceived as being caring and loving rather than being judgmental or critical.
If you take a moment to think about your own curiosity, you could make new discoveries about yourself, others, and your life. Since this is a topic that relates to mindfulness, my curiosity about feeling curious comes quite naturally and so I take the time to mull it over.
Things to be curious about:
the world and how things work
animals
nature
the creation of all life forms
people you know and love
people you don't know who you may want to know
people you don't know, but feel empathy for
why people behave in certain ways
why people say what they say
why you avoid people, situations, and conversations
why you stay closed off when what you want most is to feel loved and connected with others
why other people's feelings affect us so much
why death is so hard for us who experience the loss
why people end up falling in love with each other and sometimes hurt each other the most
why we choose certain careers
why we connect with certain people more than with others
why we are destroying the beautiful world we live in
why people leave or why they stay
your own self
why you say the things you say to yourself or why you act in certain ways
your feelings and what they are trying to tell you
your feelings and why they sometimes feel so big and out of control or why other times you can't seem to feel them at all (numbed out)
what other places in the world look like
what is another persons driving force
what makes another person feel loved
what is another person's story
how it feels to be from another country other your own
how it feels to be an immigrant living in America
how it feels to be first generation American with immigrant parents
how it feels to be discriminated against
how it feels to be rich or poor or never satisfied with what you have
how it feels to be completely at peace with who you are and choices you've made
This list could go on and on so I invite you to get curious about what makes you feel curious. I believe that curiosity is everything because without it, there is only apathy. Apathy defined is the lack of interest, enthusiasm, and concern. Without these things, life doesn't have purpose and we are simply existing rather than living, sort of like eating without tasting.
When you are being curious, you are showing that you care and caring IS everything!