Romir Swar Week #2: Curious
If I had to compare myself to one character in the world of movies and tv shows, I would choose the silly little monkey who questions everything. As a kid, I used to spend weeks on weeks, days on days, and hours on hours binging Curious George episodes. The more I watched, the more similarities I noticed between myself and George, with the most prominent being that he questions EVERYTHING. And, if you know me, or have shared a class with me, you’ll probably agree with me when I say it’s safe to say my hand remains upright and off the table more often than not.
Like George, my curiosity guides me—often into places I hadn’t planned on going. He might wander into a museum exhibit and cause a chaotic chain reaction, while I might ask my teacher a simple question, which somehow leads to me asking fifteen follow ups, going down a rabbit hole NOBODY asked for. With that being said, my curious side does help me understand things better or learn information I wouldn't have if I didn't ask, because who else is wondering if Ben and Jerry's sold anything other than ice cream (was supposed to be bagels). But that same curiosity sometimes lands me me in trouble at school—whether that’s from asking one(or five) too many questions, blurting out a thought at the wrong moment, or overcomplicating something that should’ve been simple.
But there's this trait to George: he doesn’t cause chaos on purpose, he just can’t help himself. And lowkey, that’s me too. I’m not trying to be difficult or ask annoying questions, but I can’t stop wondering “what if?” or “why not?”
In other words, curiosity doesn’t come with an off switch.
Another way I relate to Curious George is his relationship with The Man with the Yellow Hat—his caretaker who answers all (well, most) of his questions. I see that person in my parents. Like you know those movie scenes of the little annoying kid asking a machine gun amount of “whys?” Well, take that, and now transform it into a 16 year old Indian junior in highschool and you have me!
So at the end of the day, once all the episodes are watched, being curious may mean I ask too many questions, and it might get me into trouble, but being curious is what keeps me learning and growing, just like a certain monkey in a yellow hat’s world.
Romir, I would’ve never thought I’d learn that Ben and Jerry’s were going to sell bagels, from being in an AP Lang class. Thank goodness for adding that to your blog, else I’d walk around this world not knowing this incredibly crucial information. Thank you for educating me, and the rest of the cohort about this. Keep doing divine work out here (no sarcasm intended).
ReplyDeleteAside from that, I totally envy the relatability you find in this one character—feeling completely seen by someone, even if they’re just a fictional character, is very touching. I also loved Curious George as a child and his antics were so memorable, so I’m pleasantly surprised to see that you’ve written about him! I think you embody his curiosity so well and you two are like two halves of the same inquisitive coin. I see the thoughtfulness you put into your question-asking game and I seriously appreciate that. Your questions always contribute to the picture we’re trying to piece together of the details of an assignment—asking things I know I wouldn’t have thought about in the moment, but are definitely vital to what the assignment asks for. Stay curious!!
I relate deeply to the feeling of falling down the rabbit hole of random information and the tendency for curiosity to lead you down treacherous paths. However, a sense of curiosity can be a wonderful thing. Without being curious people out there, how would we learn or make anything new? Some may say that ‘curiosity killed the cat’, but remember that the full saying is that ‘curiosity killed the cat, but satisfaction brought it back’!
ReplyDeleteI am ashamed to admit I almost forgot about Curious George, despite always watching it when I was little (alongside Wild Kratts and Sesame Street). But my god, the nostalgia is strong with this one. Small tangent, but I just realized that the show’s last episode was in 2022, and now I’m sad. But honestly, hearing you ask questions in class, your curiosity is completely justified and always a great contribution to the class environment! So many discoveries in the world would have been lost if we didn’t have people willing to question things around them, so absolutely keep asking questions!
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