Setting Intentions: Curiosity
05.01.24 | 29205
For Reflection:
Would you consider yourself a curious person?
What does your relationship with curiosity currently look like? What comes to mind when you hear this word?
Are there specific topics or themes that you’re more curious about than others? Why do those topics grab your attention?
Are you content with your relationship to curiosity? Why or why not?
When was the last time you intentionally entered a learning community?
Do you ever spend time simply wondering? Are you quick to search for answers, or are you content to be curious?
What other emotions come along with being curious?
May – what a glorious feeling. In my world, May promises to bring a variety of experiences and opportunities to rest that I have not had for a little while now, and I am so excited for that. Pair that additional rest with the gorgeous weather we’re experiencing, and my rejuvenation levels are through the roof.
Whether you are also experiencing beautiful weather or not (Minnesota friends, I remember and feel your pain), I hope this month might bring some amount of additional rest – an opportunity to find and create pockets of time in your daily life for people, places, and practices that reduce stress.
In May, I’ll be exploring curiosity – what it means to be curious, what it means to have the urge to continue learning, even long after our society tells us this should be a priority, what it means to question the status quo and wonder why. I’ve chosen this topic specifically because I don’t feel like I have a built-in space for curiosity. I don’t feel like I have a built-in community (especially after leaving academia) that encourages me to pursue my questions and curiosities about the world. I don’t even really feel like I have built-in hobbies or habits that encourage me to be curious. And while none of this is inherently wrong or bad, I miss the act of asking questions. I miss having thoughtful conversations about seemingly random topics. And I miss being encouraged to learn, even when there’s no “need” to do so.
Throughout undergrad, I remember saying to my parents and to my partner that I simply enjoyed being around people with whom I could have “intellectual conversations.” Of course, at the time, I couldn’t really define what I meant by this. But now, I know that the opportunity to have conversations about all sorts of things – the importance of translation services in hospital settings, the Bhagavad Gita, the services offered (or not offered) to unhoused folks in the Twin Cities, and the list goes on – isn’t available in all settings. While I have enjoyed the communities I have joined since I left academia, I have also greatly missed the opportunity to voice my half-formed ideas, learn about topics outside my areas of expertise, and to lose track of time having thoughtful conversations. I miss those spaces, and I’m hoping to gain some of that learner’s mindset back this month.
In the coming weeks, I will share about the people, places, and practices which inspire curiosity in my life. And by the end of the month, I hope to intentionally find some time in my regular routine – to learn! To grow! To get curious about the world we live in and how we participate in it. Whether that simply involves reading the news to keep up to date on current events or pursuing some form of more structured learning about a topic you find interesting, I hope you might invite some amount of curiosity into your daily life. I hope you might allow other life tasks to take a back seat as you find joy in learning.
As you consider what curiosity looks like in your life, I hope you’ll remember that our individual energy and commitment to leading more curious lives contributes to a communal reality as well – one which can be found through deeper connection with one another and in which we encourage each other’s curiosity in addition to our own.
The questions offered at the top of each Zip Code Project post can be used as daily journal prompts. This month, there will be 31 in total. If you’d like access to all 31 May questions ahead of time, send me a message at hello@thezipcodeproject.com or on Instagram @autumndelongrodgers. I would love to send them over so you never miss one.
Until next time, friends.