I am curious at heart. I wonder about the world, the people on the street, the woman on the bus, the child running around at the park, and the person in the car next to mine. This is why I studied history. I was curious about the past and how we got to this moment. It’s also why I ventured to get another degree. I’ve learned that approaching this world with curiosity is the only way to get anywhere. It’s how you learn and grow and become something more. 

I recently read a blog post about the concept of sonder and it got me thinking about my wonder of other people. Growing up as an only child meant there was a level of socialization I was missing out on. I didn’t know a lot of things and felt like I was a step behind. So I would be quiet, observe, and then try to mimic the kids around me. But it never truly worked, I was still a step behind. Eventually, I caught up because I had no other choice but it kept me curious about human nature. 

It’s part of why I leaned so deeply into reading and media. It helped me better understand people and myself. It was also a way to escape reality, but at least it did more than just that. 

History did something similar for me. It was thrilling to step outside my life and into the bigger picture. It reminded me that perhaps what I’m going through is a small blip in the grand scheme of things. Or maybe National Treasure and Hamilton got to me. Either way, history reminds us there is much more to the story than we first realized. Things don’t appear out of nowhere, we exist in context. 

“You think you just fell out of a coconut tree? You exist in the context of all in which you live and what came before you,” - Kamala Harris 

My interest in history began in high school when I took AP U.S. History. We read an excerpt from Howard Zinn’s book, A People’s History of the United States, and my desire to know more was solidified. American history was the most fascinating to me back then. I wanted to know everything about how we got here. Who won and who lost to create the version of a nation I was standing in? 

In college, I expanded beyond the constraints of the country I live in. Suddenly, I needed to know how it all came to be. How nations and empires rose one day and fell the next. The signs that it was already written on the wall. I no longer study history, but that desire to know never left me. If I had all the money in the world, I would be a historian right now. 

Studying history taught me two skills that seem to be quickly leaving a lot of Americans. Curiosity and critical thinking. Without curiosity, we stay stuck. There is so much more to this world than what you can see right before you, but you need to be curious to see it. Without critical thinking, you can’t learn discernment. In a world of information, finding what you need and what is true is harder than ever. And seeing what to trust is even harder. 

This week I began reading the book The Message by Ta-Nehisi Coates. At the beginning of the book, he writes about the importance of journalism. He writes about stories. History is a collection of stories that are pieced together over time. History is happening all around us.

Most importantly, history is political. It is a revolution and a rebellion to know what came before. One day they will try to erase it by banning books and spreading misinformation. They’ve done it before because information and knowledge are power. Hold onto what you know is true, hold on to your lived experience, and write it down. 

Anyway, I love history, but ask me about my favorite historical moment and I’ll forget everything I’ve ever learned. Also, I’m incredibly grateful to the amazing teachers and professors who inspired my love for history.

Currently Consuming

Reading

• The Message by Ta-Nehisi Coates

Watching

• Rewatched The Holiday

• Love is blind!!

Listening

• Olivia O’Brien’s new EP!!!!!

• For Real This Time by Gracie Abrams

My notes app this week

Holiday romcoms/movie recommendations!!!

• The Holiday

• Love Actually 

• Last Christmas

• Let It Snow 

• Holidate 

• Happiest Season

• Single All The Way

• Ex-mas 

• Bridget Jones's Diary 

• Four Christmases

• Something From Tiffany’s

See ya! 

Thanks for reading, and I’ll see you next week!

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