Marissa Scimone

Holly Pappas

English 101

8 March 2015

 

It comes as no surprise that no two people are the same, not even identical twins.  How can two people who share the same DNA be so different? Curiosity. Who we are and the things that capture our attention and interests are a direct reflection of curiosity. It is not only what sets us apart from so many people, but it is also what brings us closer to others as well. The question that I will propose in this essay is simply, how? How does curiosity set one person apart from another and also bring us closer to one another all at once? Also, how does curiosity affect us as individuals?

How does curiosity set us apart from others, yet bring us closer to one another all at once? Take a moment to analyze yourself, your life, and the people you surround yourself with. Now, focus on those you surround yourself with, particularly your best friend. You and your best friend share a variety of similar tastes, such as genres of music, your love for your local coffee shop, sharing an interest in tattoos and piercings, and so on and so forth. Ask yourselves, what is your ideal date? What qualities do you look for the most in a potential partner? What are your long and short term goals for your future? In a perfect world, what would your lives be like? After discussing your answers, you will discover that no matter how similar you both are, you are both also so incredibly different from one another.  You two share very similar interests, but there will always be topics and things that interests one of you that does not particularly appeal to the other, and that’s okay. It is okay to share interests with one another, and it is also okay to venture off on your own and learn more about what interests and fascinates you. It is essentially what makes us who we are.

Without our knowledge, curiosity has implanted itself into our everyday routines, occasional hobbies, inspires new conquests and is the core of our interests. For instance, discussing everyday routines, curiosity lead you to your local coffee shop. It peaked your interests, so naturally, you decided to check it out. You found yourself scanning the menu until you came across something that you found to be interesting and to your surprise, you loved it. Before you knew it, you found yourself carving out time every morning to make a quick coffee stop before class or work. Just by an example as simple as your everyday morning routines, it really makes you stop and think what bigger and greater things your curiosity has lead you to without your knowledge. When you really think about it, curiosity works in mysterious ways. Our everyday lives would be nothing that they are at this very moment.

The range of curiosity is actually quite remarkable. It ranges from something so simple, such as how we express ourselves, to what we plan on doing with our lives. Take a moment to think about your bedroom. We design our bedrooms as if it was a physical representation as to what is going on inside of our minds. Upon walking into some people’s room, you can find their walls to be covered in posters of their favorite musical artists, paintings, and pictures. They have candles and books overflowing their book shelves and what seems to be an infinite assortment of pillows on their bed. Most people design their bedrooms to be a temporary escape from the world around them, so naturally it is a reflection of themselves. However, some people do not choose to put their art on their walls, but instead they put it on their bodies, some express themselves through the work of tattoos. For those who do not go as far as tattoos, they express themselves through their wardrobe. It is actually a very cool concept that such various types of clothing, shoes, and accessories can accommodate to everyone’s own style and personal interests. However, not all self expression is physical. Where fashion and decoration fail, music speaks. Some of the greatest of self expression is through music. The world is filled with genre after genre of music and for some, lyrics speak for them when they cannot find the words themselves. Music speaks to everyone differently, and it is only then that you will discover what is left unsaid by not only yourself, but those around you.

Curiosity inspires and also challenges us. More often times than not, curiosity is what inspires people to become a better version of themselves. It can inspire short term goals, such as picking up a guitar and wanting to learn your favorite song, finding yourself on a health kick to try and improve your personal health, or wanting to learn how to tumble. However, it can also lead us to much greater goals, such as getting into your dream college to study the field that you wish to spend the rest of your life working in and it is a beautiful thing.

Curiosity even goes as far as in inspiring us to explore the world around us. As we are little, we could spend hours upon hours just exploring our home and backyard, but as we grow older, we wish to go further. “The overly curious mind exhibits a “lust to find out and know,” not for any practical purpose but merely for the sake of knowing.  Thanks to the “disease of curiosity” people go to watch freaks in circuses and charlatans in the piazzas. “ (Eamon.) It will take us everywhere, from our backyards, to local events, all the way to another country. It inspires self growth of knowledge of not only ourselves, but also of the world around you.

Curiosity plays a key role in how we go about our everyday lives. “I believe we are all a sum of our experiences, and that we choose what experiences we have based on our curiosity.” (Buckman.) Our curiosities and interests are meant to be indulged. They subconsciously lead us to some of our best experiences and memories, such as seeing your favorite band play two hours away, just getting in your car on a whim to go to the beach in the dead of winter just because you miss the sound of the waves crashing around you, and a group of your friends taking a trip across the country because you’re both so eager to explore somewhere that you’re not so accustomed to. Curiosity makes you want to explore not only the world around you, but also the world inside of you. It is not until you indulge your interests that you discover who you truly are and where your curiosity can take you.

 

 

 

Work Cited Page

 

Eamon, William. “The Disease Called Curiosity.” WilliamEamon. 2 August 2010.

http://williameamon.com/?p=185

 

Buckman, Sarah. “Curiosity and Self.” English 101. Edublogs. 14 March 2014.

http://sebuckman85.edublogs.org/

 

 

Curiosity is implanted in us when we are first born, and as we age, it only grows bigger and bigger. My curiosity lead me to one of the most remarkable adventures of my life and in that moment, it brought light to questions about myself that I had always struggled to answer.

Growing up, I was surrounded by people who beamed happiness. Whether they had the best of the best, or were making the best of bad situations, everyone around me seemed to find an inner joy that they couldn’t shake. When they did have bad days, it seemed as if they would bounce back the very next day and come back better than ever. Consistently being surrounded by this behavior, I would have thought that the joy from others would soon rub off on me, but it never did. My bad days came in packs, making themselves comfortable for long visits. I’ve never been one to openly discuss my feelings, so sometimes it felt as if my own misery with myself was a form of company. Being alone for a majority of my younger years made it seemingly easy to openly welcome any form of company I could receive, even if that meant opening the door to sorrow.

As odd as it may sound, I found comfort in sadness. But after a certain point in my life, I had grown tired of never being excited for anything anymore, never looking forward to something that was supposed to be fun. I knew someday that I would eventually feel happy again, I just wondered when that time would finally come. It wasn’t until the Spring of 2013 that my unanswered questions would come to light.

On April 12, 2013 I took the trip of a lifetime. I packed my bags and headed to the Logan airport in Boston where I would later arrive at my first destination, Dublin, Ireland. Before I could experience the beauty of Ireland, I had to endure the torture of a three hour layover in Chicago. The three hour layover and thirteen hour flight only left me with my own thoughts and ideas of what Europe would possibly be like. When I had arrived, all of my expectations had been blown out of the water. Never in my life did I think I would be first hand experiencing a new country. With the lack of money in my family I thought I would have been lucky to even see the west coast by the time I turned eighteen.

When I touched down, I spent some time in Ireland, Wales, and London. Never in my life have I seen such beauty. I was exposed to a fresh and exciting environment and I was surrounded by people who had a natural glow about them, and for the first time in a long time, I had one too. All of the negative thoughts and emotions that seemed to consume me had finally felt as if they were loosening their grip and allowing me to breathe. Europe had such character and finesse to it, nothing I was ever accustomed to. The aura of these countries made it damn near impossible to feel anything besides joy and it absolutely mesmerized me.

As much as I had wished my time in London, Wales, and especially Ireland would never end, my most anticipated stop had finally arrived, Paris! Although Paris turned out to be one of my least favorite explorations, I had discovered the answer to one of my greatest questions there. I had to travel to the top of the Eiffel Tower to finally understand. But before I could reach the top, I had to climb one thousand steps just to make it halfway up. When I made it halfway, I looked at the world around me and absorbed everything. I could see so much beauty just from my trip halfway up, I could only imagine what was to be seen when I made my trip to the very top. When I reached the top, everything I had envisioned had seemed to fade away. I was looking at the world for what is was and I had never felt so happy or fortunate to have been in that moment. At that moment, I realized the answer to my question. In that moment I had realized what it felt like to be genuinely happy with yourself and your life. For such a long time I wondered why we keep going when we reach certain points in our lives where we believe there is nothing left to live for, but I finally understood. I realized that there is so much more to discover and learn, so much more to experience. I could have given up halfway up the Eiffel Tower when I had thought I had seen enough, but there was so much that I would have lost out on. From that moment on, I had a more positive outlook about myself and my life. I made a promise to myself that I would never allow myself to reach such a low point in my life ever again, because there is so much I have yet to experience and there is so much more in store.

I am not going to say that my trip completely changed me, because it didn’t. I do still have bad days every now and then, but I never allow them to overpower me like they once did. I have seen myself at one of the lowest points in my life and now I can only look back on it with fondness and appreciation. I realized that sometimes you need to experience the bad in order to realize just how good you have it. My trip is something I will always take with me, because it not only holds the most beautiful of all memories, but it also carries some of my greatest discoveries.

When I was fourteen, I had an unbearable desire to explore the world around me. I found myself roaming the streets from anywhere between four o’clock in the afternoon to four o’clock at night. I was curious about everything that I had been so hopelessly numb to over the years, and when I turned sixteen, I was presented with one of the greatest gifts of all, a trip to Europe. It was only then that all of my unanswered questions would finally come to light.

On April 12, 2013 I took the trip of a lifetime. I packed my bags and headed to the Logan airport in Boston where I would later arrive at my first destination, Dublin, Ireland. Before I could experience the beauty of Ireland, I had to endure the torture of a three hour layover in Chicago. The three hour layover and thirteen hour flight only left me with my own thoughts and ideas of what Europe would possibly be like. When I had arrived, all of my expectations had been blown out of the water. Never in my life did I think I would be first hand experiencing a new country. With the lack of money in my family I thought I would have been lucky to even see the west coast by the time I turned eighteen.

As corny as it may sound, it seemed as if every corner in Dublin was filled with beauty. Every building had such character about it and everything, down to the light posts, seemed to have been planned and designed with such grace and elegance. Even the graphite was a work of art. As if the beautiful scenery wasn’t enough, the people that I encountered had such a glow about them, but who could blame them? The air was so much clearer, buildings and architecture so beautifully designed, and the street performers so incredibly gifted. To this day, I cannot listen to Just Another Brick in the Wall by Pink Floyd without hearing the soothing sound of that boy’s accent singing his acoustic version of the song. In all of the days that I dreamt about my trip to Europe, I had always assumed that Ireland would have been my least favorite country to visit, but it is the one that I cannot wait to get back to the most.

As mesmerized as I was with Dublin, the land of Wales was something so unbelievably breath taking. To some, the idea of taking a two hour drive up a mountain to reach a hotel sounds bland and undesirable, but the view was anything but. The rivers that traced the mountains made the trip seem somewhat soothing and timeless. I had never seen anything so naturally beautiful before, I just wish that the pictures I took could have done it justice. Part of me still wishes that the rest of Wales was as beautiful as the trip up that mountain.

After a peaceful two days spent in Wales, it was time to make our way to London! Boy, was it a sight to see! London reminded me of Ireland regarding the beautiful architecture, but the landmarks were just an entirely different story. It honestly boggles my mind to this day how people who live in London become accustomed to beauty of the Big Ben, the Tower Bridge, commonly known as the London Bridge, and the London Eye and think nothing of it on their commute to work or to their local coffee shops. At times I wish that I was born and raised in Europe, preferably Ireland, but I know that I wouldn’t appreciate it the way that I do now with fresh eyes. The view from the top of the London Eye was something I will never forget and it was honestly the perfect ending to my time spent in London.

As much as I had wished my time in London would never end, my most anticipated stop had finally arrived, Paris! Although Paris turned out to be one of my least favorite explorations, I had discovered the answer to one of my greatest questions there. I had to travel to the top of the Eiffel Tower to finally understand. But before I could reach the top, I had to climb one thousand steps just to make it halfway up. When I made it halfway, I looked at the world around me and absorbed everything. I could see so much beauty just from my trip halfway up, I could only imagine what was to be seen when I made my trip to the very top. When I reached the top, everything I had envisioned had seemed to fade away. I was looking at the world for what is was and I had never felt so happy or fortunate to have been in that moment. At that moment, I realized the answer to my question. In that moment I had realized what it felt like to be genuinely happy with yourself and your life. For such a long time I wondered why we keep going when we reach certain points in our lives where we believe there is nothing left to live for, but I finally understood. I realized that there is so much more to discover and learn, so much more to experience. I could have given up halfway up the Eiffel Tower when I had thought I had seen enough, but there was so much that I would have lost out on. From that moment on, I had a more positive outlook. I am not going to say that my trip completely changed me, because it didn’t. It just made me appreciate everything that much more and to always keep an open mind, because there is so much more in store that I have yet to discover. My trip is something I will always take with me, because it not only holds the most beautiful of all memories, but it also carries my greatest discoveries.

Hi, my name is Marissa Scimone. I am eighteen years old and this is my very first semester as a college student. I grew up in Taunton and graduated from Taunton High School as the class of 2014! I was never all that involved in my high school aside from cheerleading, but I’m hoping to get more involved in clubs and potentially pledge a sorority when I transfer to BSU or maybe even a university in New Hampshire. I am going to be an Early Education major and minor in Special Education. I was a teacher’s assistant for a year and a half through a program in my high school called Tiger Tots and volunteered for two years to participate in the Special Olympics through my cheerleading team. I am a full time college student and work two part time jobs so naturally the only peace I find is through concerts, ironically enough, and traveling. I’m looking forward to this semester and all of the new people that I will meet!

I always thought I’d find the love of my life at the perfect time, in the perfect moment. Scrambling to finish a forgotten homework assignment in a local coffee shop never seemed like a perfect moment to me, but in that instance, it did. All of the stress that seemed to be running marathons around my body, had suddenly come to an abrupt holt once I heard the sweet sound of a delicate voice come from an even more elegant frame. Her dark brown eyes seemed to capture all of the room’s light because there wasn’t a single soul in that coffee shop that wasn’t looking at her. It seemed like she had everything in world in the palm of her hand, and when our eyes had finally met, she had me too.

1. My hometown was a wonderful place to grow up.

Although my hometown was small and very diverse, the sense of community was astonishing. The familiarity and involvement among everyone was not only beneficial to the community as a whole, but left everyone with a certain feeling of comfort and satisfaction.

2. Laci had a rather eccentric style.

Laci’s sense of style was a direct reflection of herself. She was a woman of unique tastes and interests. Her style couldn’t be found in typical department stores, but rather consignment shops and garments passed down from previous ancestors. She made it a point for her style to be just as unique as she was.

3. Mr. Brown is the worst teachers I’ve ever had.

Never in my life did I think I would have more of a passion for History than my own professor. His lack of interest and desire for this subject only makes learning about the Cold War that much harder for not only myself, but everyone in the classroom.

4. The room seemed very institutional.

The lack of personality and color in this room seemed more like a prison than an actual classroom. A room that is supposed to inspire learning and self growth only feels like a scheduled period of wrestling with my inner voices and lost thoughts in the back of my mind.

Throughout the years, I have taken a significant amount of pride in my school work. One of my better subjects just so happens to be English, which I can proudly say that I spent three long semesters of in the honors level. Although I do take a lot of pride in my papers, I usually only write when it is required of me and the occasional blog on social media. For whatever reason, I find it much easier to discuss certain topics and jot down my thoughts and opinions on them than to tell you about myself. There are many instances, such as now, that I experience extreme writer’s block and find myself gazing at my screen anywhere from five to fifteen minutes before I can form a coherent thought about myself. I do however think of myself as a strong writer. My best work just so happens to come from discussing literature and topics that I have familiarized myself with. Something that I hope to take with me from this course is a more confident approach to creative writing and other forms of writing. Although I find myself excelling in one form of writing, I want to feel more confident in other areas as well. In the rare occasion that I do find myself writing personal pieces about myself through private blogging, I find it to be a beneficial release and intend to use this method more often. Although my self-expressed blogging is private, I want to be able to look back upon my writing and immediately pick up on how far I have come since that particular piece of work. I am eager to discover new strengths and weaknesses that I possess and see just how far I can take my writing!