Curiosity Is a Privilege | Why We Stopped Asking Questions

What happens to a country when curiosity disappears?I’m by myself on the couch this week, sitting with something that’s been frustrating me lately: how little curiosity and nuance there seems to be in the world right now. Everywhere I look there’s an extreme view on one side, an extreme view on the other, and almost nothing in between. We assume the other person is evil or dumb instead of stopping to ask whether they’re just working with different information.So I put on my trauma therapist hat. My theory is that curiosity is a privilege of safety. When you’re stuck in survival mode, your nervous system doesn’t leave space for questions, nuance, or seeing the gray. After years of chaos and a global pandemic, a lot of us are still living in that defensive posture even when the danger has passed.In this episode I get into the ICE detention protests, why the angriest voices are always the loudest, why you’re probably aiming your anger at the wrong person, and the small things we can actually do to feel safe enough to get curious again.Plus my reading recommendation this week: Your Heart Was Made for This by Oren Jay Sofer.Turn off your phone, get out into the world, talk to real people, and stay curious.Resources mentioned* Your Heart Was Made for This: Contemplative Practices for Meeting a World in Crisis with Courage, Integrity, and Love by Oren Jay Sofer* Say What You Mean by Oren Jay Sofer* Women of Wonder community on Substack: https://thewonder.life/wow/Find more over on Substack, including the Women of Wonder community: https://thewonder.life/wow/ Get full access to Cristie Ritz-King, PsyD at critzking.substack.com/subscribe