Curious Kate: Truthseeker Extraordinare

The irony of life is that sometimes what we see as a weakness can be our greatest strength. ~ CH

CK: Hi, Papa ❤

Papa: Hello, Katie child ❤

CK: I was just wondering, why can’t I be like everybody else?

Papa: Why would you want to be like everybody else?

CK: My life would just run more smoothly.

Papa: Really? How so?

CK:  What I mean is, I know my curiosity drives people crazy.  It almost drives me crazy at times.  It’s like my head is spinning around and around like one of those salad spinners, and all these questions are swirling around inside.

Papa: Slow down, girl.  Is it really that bad?

CK: Well, maybe that is a slight exaggeration, but you get my point.

Papa: Life was never meant to be complicated, yet free will without reservation tends to get messy sometimes, but that is another discussion.  So back to your initial question: what kind of person would you rather be if you would not be who you are?

CK: Hmmm.  I don’t really know.  More left-brained, maybe?

Papa: I gave you a left brain.  His name is Tom.  Just kidding! Continue.

CK: By the same token, when I take the time to sit down and visit with you, you make everything seem so simple.

Papa: It is simple.  It was simple – in the beginning.  Anyway, back to you now.  Do you think you would have come to me with your unanswered questions and need for truth had I not made you with this insatiable curiosity?

CK: Good point.

Papa: So, do you see your curiosity as a gift or a burden?

CK: A gift?

Papa: Every child has been given a gift to use to make my world whole.  Yours just happens to be the need for getting to the bottom of the truth.  It is written in your spiritual DNA.

CK:  You mean I could have been a detective, or scientist, or an investigative reporter?

Papa: If you had chosen to, absolutely, but you chose to be a teacher, which by the way, was my first pick.  That is who I needed you to be.  You can appreciate and inspire little children to ask questions, to open their precious little minds up to new possibilities.  That is what my world needs: to think differently, to see differently, and to be different.  Would you really want to be anyone except who you are?

CK: Not really, I guess.  I love teaching.  It seems like teaching was something I always wanted to do.  I’m not really sure why.

Papa: Do you remember when you and Sam were 8 and you would babysit the two little neighbor kids and play school?  You always insisted on being the teacher, and Sam was always the lunch lady.  You fed the minds and she fed the tummies.

CK: Oh my gosh!  I had totally forgotten about that.  And now Sam volunteers at the soup kitchen twice a month.  She does love to cook, that’s for sure.

Papa: The point is, the desire to teach was planted in your heart a long time ago.  And when a child of mine finds their true calling, they also find their greatest happiness.  Unfortunately, not all of my children do, and that saddens me greatly.  So much potential, so much waste.

You also had a mother who nurtured your curiosity.  She knew it was a gift, and she knew that if you found your way to use that gift, you would be happy.  It is just like how she loves cooking for others… why even though restaurant work is hard work, she really enjoys it. I gave her the gift of hospitality. 🙂

CK: She really does love to take care of others.  I remember she used to take leftover soup from the restaurant to the homeless shelter in Plainsville after work sometimes.  She made special treats at Christmas time and mom and Sam and I would take them down there.   And even though she would be exhausted after running around all day, she always made time for me.

I remember, one time, mom came home from work and said her puppies were screaming  (that is what she called her feet), so she put them in her foot bath and we read stories way past my bedtime.

And when I was older, she would have me read books to my doll, Annabelle.  I had an older cousin named Annabelle, and I thought she was really cool.  Anyway, I can see how mom fueled my imagination for the gift of learning and teaching, too. She was a great mom.

Papa: She was!  And she will be a great-grandma, too. Hint, hint. Time’s a’ tickin.’

CK: I know. Tom and I have been talking about it.

Papa: Just a thought. But seriously, you and Tom will be major league parents, each with wonderful gifts to share with your children – gifts they can use to make the world a better place.

CK: Major league, huh?  I’ll have to tell Tom.  He loves baseball.

You know Papa, I never thought about all this before.

Papa: And you are a very nurturing soul, Katie, just like your mom – so much to share.  It is why you have so many friends.  You care so deeply for others.

CK:  Thank you, Papa. I was taught by the best. 🙂 But we digressed again.

Papa: All we talk about is important, Katie, but yes, where were we?

CK: Ummm, curiosity as a gift, along with getting to the bottom of the truth, life being simpler, talking to you.  You are all about truth.  See what I mean about the salad spinner?  Let’s go with truth, I guess.

Papa: What would you like to know about truth?

CK: Well for one thing, why doesn’t everyone want to live with truth, especially your truth?  Wouldn’t that make life on this planet better for everyone?

Papa: Absolutely!  But not everyone believes as you do.  For some, it seems much easier to make up their own truth than work with mine, and it ends up causing all kinds of problems.

CK: What are they thinking?

Papa: Classic Adam and Eve story.  I created humankind to be in a loving relationship with me, and real love cannot be coerced.  So, I had to give my children free will, and what they do with it is up to them.  They could choose to love or not, believe or not, create their own truth or believe what I had taught in my 10 Highly Successful Ways for Extraordinary Living.  (You thought Stephan Covey came up with that idea on his own?)

CK: Okay, I get that, but what about the evolution of the human mind.  Doesn’t that change truth sometimes – many times in fact?

Papa: It changes the understanding of what is possible and even mankind’s understanding of who I am, but it doesn’t change my basic truth.  I created truth. No one can change the truth but me.

CK: I can appreciate that, I guess.  So give me an example of a truth that cannot change.

Papa: Okay, since we were on the subject of love: True and unadulterated love cannot exist without the creator of that love.

CK: So basically without you, Papa, love cannot exist.  Well, actually nothing exists without you.  But again, what happens to what you have created is up to us by virtue of the gift of free will.

Papa: Exactly.  So mankind can use his free will to build up or to break down.  There has been a lot of fracturing lately. And yet, I have much hope for the future.

CK: Really?  All we seem to hear about is one disaster after another, natural and manmade.

Papa: Actually, most natural disasters are manmade.  Again, another discussion.  Yet, I see so much hope for my children.  And nothing is impossible with me.  Love lived out presents so much possibility because it is the single most powerful force in all of creation.  If it were harnessed to its potential, it would change the face of the earth.

All I need to do is look at you and Sam, and I see how love is being shared with others.  And there are many, many Kates and Sams out there.  Love changes the human heart.  It is the only thing that can heal my broken world.  It is that simple.  It is what is needed for my world to continue to exist.

CK: Yikes. That sounds ominous.

Papa: It is a simple truth.

CK: We need to ramp up the love vibe.  I love listening to you, Papa.

Papa: I am always available.  You know that.

So let me ask you a question.  Can you think of another thing you can do with this gift of curiosity to make your little corner of the world a better place?

CK: Hmmm.  There are so many possibilities.

Papa: Like?

CK: Well, I could do something like start a blog to teach parents how to help their kids expand their curiosity, connect with the parents of my kids, do a workshop to help them discover their kids’ gifts so that they can support them as they grow and find their place in the world.

Papa: Fabulous idea!  See what a good sense of curiosity can do?  It can spark all kinds of wonderful ideas and opportunities.

CK: For me, coming up with ideas is the easy part!

Papa: Just remember not to spread yourself too thin.  That wouldn’t be good for anyone, especially you and Tom. 🙂

CK:  Thank you for being you, Papa.  I love you and I want to make you proud.

Papa: You already do, kiddo, you already do.  I love you, too.  Later 🙂

CK: Later 🙂

Points to ponder: God gives each of us unique and special gifts to use in making our world a better place. And using these gifts brings to our lives a kind of joy we can get no other way. What gifts did God give you and have you implemented them in your life?

Challenge: What is one thing, even a small thing, that you would change about yourself that would bring you more fulfillment in your life? Just do it.

As each of you has received a gift, use it to serve one another as good stewards of God’s varied grace. 1 Peter 4:10-1