Curiosity Killed The Cat

Jan 29, 2007 by Naomi.

Curiosity killed the cat — a common enough expression — probably coined a long time ago to put a stop to questions posed to exasperated old folks who didn’t have the answers or didn’t want to share them. Curiosity is an animal trait which encouraged exploration and development of species since time began. I have my share of it and it contributes to the chaos in my life like nothing else.

I was seeking information about natural selection, evolution to be exact, and found research referenced by scientists I had never heard of. I know of Yale, Harvard, Cambridge and other USA universities so the facts are acceptable, but Witwatersrand? A university in the Transvaal? That smacked of South Africa. Well that enticed me away from the cornbread I had in the making. I have a small cache of maps — in a drawer 12 inches wide by 14 inches long and 5 inches deep — a depository of many authentic maps I collected in my travels. Somewhere in that collection I expected to find a map of Africa. But there was none. Absolutely no map exclusively of Africa was among them. And I took all maps out of the drawer and spread them on the floor. Turns out that was a mistake.

Now you know what? I have to sort and reorganize that collection so I will be able to find the country or territory when my curiosity searches for answers. How does that contribute to the chaos in my life? Well, picture this. One more job in a day already filled with things to do. Organizing those maps is essential. Time taken now will save many minutes in future searches.

But because there was no map I had to look elsewhere for an immediate answer.

I found information in a dictionary, not on a map. Here’s where our language development and documentation of symbols are really critical. Among other things humans are good at is changing things. Renaming countries is one of them. Africa is no exception. The University of Witwatersrand happens to be important because it is where the skull of the first humanoid artifact is housed. A child’s skull, argued over as all artifacts are, by archaeologists at the time of discovery.

This information is welcome but it raises more questions for which I will continue to seek answers. Curiosity has driven humans from Africa to every place in the world and my curiosity continues to frustrate me. How to fit more tasks into my long list for today? The cornbread cannot be left in limbo, dry ingredients are waiting in one bowl, liquid ingredients in another. Together they must be combined and placed in the oven which is already hot. The maps cannot be left strewn around my bedroom floor.

Something will be left undone but there is no help for it. My curiosity shows no bounds. It is up to me to choose what to do. I will be lucky if the answers result in a longer satisfying life.

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