Curiosity
“We must
risk delight. We can do without pleasure,
but not
delight. Not enjoyment. We must have
the
stubbornness to accept our gladness in the
ruthless
furnace of this world. To make injustice
the only
measure of our attention is to worship the Devil.”
Jack
Gilbert (Refusing Heaven)
Elizabeth Gilbert, author
of Big Magic, says that living creatively means “choosing the
path of curiosity over the path of fear.” Curiosity is the
vehicle that directs every creative human act. Look around you; every
man-made thing you see—the furniture, dishes, candles, photographs,
computer, houses, cars—are the artifacts of human curiosity and
ingenuity. We simply can't help ourselves. At the very beginning of
our existence, we picked up two stones, banged them together and
created fire. Then we spent the next ten thousand years discovering
ways to use fire. Sometimes we got burned, but we kept going. It is
built into our DNA to be curious and creative animals.
In these times of made-up
facts and outright lies, when all manner of chaos is stirred up to
keep our attention constantly focused on corruption and intrigue, we
must not give up delight in our own creative nature. We must not
become so addicted to darkness that we forget we are bearers of
light. To use Gilbert's words, we must not choose the path of fear.
There is deep virtue in
being inquisitive about the world. Seeing beauty brings delight, so
we must seek it out and enjoy it. We must find whatever gives us
“stubborn gladness” in the face of ruthlessness. The world
is still a beautiful place, if we have eyes to see it, ears to hear
it. Last night I saw fireflies. Magic!
Elizabeth Gilbert says
that curiosity “teaches us how to become ourselves.” It is
the God-spark that leads us toward our own interests, our own
creative endeavors. It makes us try and try again until we are
satisfied with our work. If we are willing to trust curiosity's
guidance, who knows what we may discover.
In the Spirit,
Jane
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