The purposes of a person’s heart are deep waters,

but one who has insight draws them out.

Proverbs 20:5

Curiosity may have killed the cat, but curiosity can have life-giving results. Curiosity is not only useful when exploring new places or things, but it turns out that curiosity is a good way to explore ourselves as well. We see this particularly in relation to our feelings. Being curious about our feelings enables us to grow in our self-awareness; something which will be all too necessary for our family as we are thrust into a new culture and place, bringing with it a whole set of feelings.

Feelings in this case, are more than just a chemical reaction. They are bodily forms of knowledge.¹ My main point is that feelings can function as sign posts. They can give us clues about what we are thinking and valuing. For example, feelings of anger may highlight that I feel like an injustice has been committed or they may point to a love that I didn’t know I have (or have to a such an intensity). Rather than quickly dismissing our anger, if we are curious about it we may learn new things about ourselves. Not only may we get more insight into the situation, but we can also learn about what we were thinking and valuing and we may even learn about what another person is thinking and valuing as well. Questions like, why did I react that way, or what does my anger tell me about ‘me’ may help draw out what is going on underneath or behind the scenes. Curiosity regarding our feelings can help shed light on who we are and what we love. Curiosity may have killed the cat, but it can be a useful approach to growing in self-awareness.