The Joy of Curiosity by Josh

The Joy of Curiosity by Josh - November 2015 Scholarship Essay

Early morning light cast shadows through the gray streets. I walked along the sidewalk and listened to the noise of the city. Busy sounds of cars, sirens, and people echoed in my ear. Tilting back my head, I looked past the towering buildings and could just make out two dully colored pigeons flying high overhead. I stepped into a puddle. It had rained the night before, and with the rain came a slight chill in the air. Pulling my jacket closer about me, I shook the water off my shoe and continued on my way. Summer break was over.

I entered the concrete school, and proceeded to my first class. Taking a seat, I looked around. The walls were naked except for a blackboard which covered the front wall. A dusting of white chalk had built up along the base of the board’s rim. When the teacher entered, all the students sat a little taller, and the class began. Words were spelt in white chalk on the blackboard, and words were copied in black ink on white paper. The next class continued quite the same. Equations were written in white chalk on the blackboard, and equations were solved in black ink on white paper. For me, this was school - a repetitive, colorless continuum, but that was about to change.

My next class was Biology. I walked into the classroom, and immediately my eye was caught by a brilliant emerald green object my teacher was holding. It was breath taking. Never before while walking through the streets and alleyways had I noticed a color of such passion. I moved forward to observe more closely. The object was flat, like paper, and heart shaped. Veins webbed their way across the surface from the center. “It’s called a leaf,” my teacher said. “I found it outside the city.” Apparently, the leaf came from something called a plant. I vaguely remember hearing about plants. After the apocalypse, a vast majority of the world had gone up in flames. We now lived in cities to protect us from the storms that would carry thick ash with the wind to choke our lungs. My teacher placed the leaf under a machine and invited me to peer though the viewing lens. I audibly gasped. I witnessed miniature mechanisms capture light waves, create sparks of energy, and reflect the dazzling emerald green that had first grabbed my attention. At that moment, something within me sparked. Questions began to arise in my mind; how exactly did the leaf’s mechanism work, how did they grow, and were there other leaves like this one? Biology had kindled something within me - the spark of curiosity.

For the remainder of class I studied the leaf, asked questions, and wondered at the radiance of its color. I listened wide-eyed as I learned about chloroplasts, stomata, photosynthesis, trees, plants, and flowers. Flowers that contained more colors than I ever thought existed; Violate purples, rose reds, dandelion yellows, and poppy colored oranges. My world had exploded in the best way possible.

When it came time to head home, I asked if I could take the leaf with me, and I was told I could keep it. I walked down the sidewalk with a smile on my face and a giggle in my breath. Two pigeons landed on the pavement beside me. I stopped to look at them. They cooed and looked side to side for food. Before I had thought them drab and gray, but now, as I looked closer, I noticed how the plumage of their neck displayed vivid hues of aquamarine, turquoise, indigo, green, and magenta. Their eyes were sunset orange with a silhouette of black feathers around them. I wondered where they nested, what they ate, and how they flew upon the air. Because my perspective had changed, and my curiosity was enlightened, I no longer simply saw pigeons; rather I beheld birds of paradise dressed in lavish finery, who roamed the city as though it were a kingdom. For me, the simple had been transformed into the magnificent. Truly, Biology had catalyzed this wonderful metamorphous.

That night, as I closed my eyes to sleep, I thought to myself how lucky I was to go to class that day, because school had opened for me the door of curious wonder. My colorless world of black and white had been opened into limitless hues of color. For this I am thankful, that my education has planted in me the joy of curiosity.