During my sabbatical, my head started clearing from all the day-to-day stuff I normally let run through it. In this clearing, I was reminded that there are so many things that fascinate me. And, realizing this led to my having a more grateful attitude, which is by far a more healthy state of mind than one in which gratitude is absent.
I hope that my sharing of a few of the things that fascinate me will lead you to think about what fascinates you, which hopefully will heighten your sense of gratitude as well. And, even if you already consistently maintain a sense of gratitude, maybe you will learn something from this write-up anyway.
Creativity
The creativity of the human mind fascinates me immensely:
- How my dad could take a blank canvas and create a beautiful painting that would draw you into it.
- How writers like Dean Koontz can weave together novels that are so spellbinding you don’t want to quit reading until you’ve read all the way through.
- The ability of my guitar heroes Buster B Jones and Jerry Reed (rest in peace, Jerry) to come up with one hot guitar lick after another, causing guitarists all over the world to scramble to imitate the licks.
- And on and on.
It also fascinates me that having genius is no guarantee of being creative. For example, lots of genius scientists have been trying for decades to develop a theory of quantum gravity, without making any real progress. The current generation of scientists may well have to die off before someone comes up with a creative way of approaching the problem. That, by the way, is also fascinating: that we can get so mind-blocked by our current understanding of things that we fail to find alternatives.
Origins
The origin of our universe, and the origin of life, are fascinating subjects. We understand a great deal about how the universe evolved and how life evolved, after they were “born.” For example, we can pretty well describe the evolution of the universe to within the first 0.00000000000000000000000000000000001 seconds after the “big bang.” But we have no theory that describes the physics of the actual big bang itself. And, while we pretty well understand the mechanisms of biological evolution, we continue to come up empty-handed on how the first cell was created.
In time we may find laws of physics and chemistry that adequately describe these origins. But even that will not remove the fascinating fact that there is a rationality underlying both origins. Both types of origins obeyed rational laws, and one has to amazed that the rationality exists. Many have suggested that this rationality points to the existence of God. But, whether you want to bring religion into the subject, or keep it out, the rationality is still fascinating.
Consciousness
The most fascinating subject of all: the fact that we can think. Consciousness is possibly the least understood phenomena in the universe. We know that it is somehow related to the goings-on in our brains, but getting more specific than that is difficult.
Just think about it: we started out as star dust, then possibly some sort of polymer, then a cell, then multicellular, and on and on until we develop a brain that actually has the ability to think about our origins and even to conceive of our own deaths. No pun intended, but this is just mind-boggling.
Wrap-up
Now that I’ve listed a few of the things that fascinate me, why not take some time and think about what fascinates you? Chat about it in the comments if you’d like. Or just take some time to reflect on it. I think you’ll find it rewarding.
Thats a good list. Here’s some of mine:
- language laid bare in poetry. or just playful language.
- landscape. a sense of place, any understanding of what’s around me – historical or geological or ecological, it’s always fascinating. and that lovely feeling when you touch warm stone or wet earth and feel a connection.
- ritual – i’m always fascinated by different religions, different cultures, or just our different habits. How does somebody make rice differently to me? how do they pray? all the small details of our lives that make them foreign to somebody else.
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perhaps rationality is the greatest block of all
@kazari … Good list. Thanks for sharing.
@Kelly … interesting thought. I’ll have to think about it
What fascinates me?
Looking at the stars at night, and knowing that what I’m seeing is an image that’s thousands of years old, because that’s how long it took the light to reach me. Imagining the sheer unimaginable power of each gigantic ball of fire held together in a way my mind can’t comprehend. And realizing that while I like to think of myself as the center of the universe, I am just the tiniest speck of a speck upon the fabric of reality.
Well said, Bill … the same things fascinate me. And to think that this might only be one of an infinite number of universes makes my spec seem even smaller.
Bill,
I think it’s brilliant that you posted your thoughts so beautifully, it amazes me that more people think about gossip, tabloid news and shopping than they do about things like consciousness. I can’t help but feel like we’ve been lead astray into a world where everything is explained, and there are simple lines drawn and laws made about things like drugs without really knowing anything about it.
Time fascinates me, especially since it was theorised that time travel is possible, quantum physics and alternate universes fascinate me – just imagining there’s millions of possibilities of everything that exists doesn’t fail to give me goosebumps.
Thanks again, for the post!
The sunrise in the morning fascinates me as the ball of fire comes creeping and peeking at the edge of the world.
I am fascinated and grateful for my two small dogs. What are they thinking? Why do they look at me like they do and my heart melts thinking how dependent they are.
I am grateful to this spirit inside of me that keeps hoping and believing even when my mind doesn’t want to. Thanks for sharing your article.