"Curiosity is one of the most permanent and certain characteristics of a vigorous mind." ~ Samuel JohnsonSam Harrison's IdeaSpotting is as good as I anticipated. The approach to the material is itself handled creatively. The pages are designed in an original manner. It is not a typical "book" in the send of having only words on the pages. Every page is a new layout, appealing to the eye, though thematically it holds together and does not interfere with the message.
On page 25 the heading is, "Open your mind, and people will show you what's on their minds." He quotes Clint Eastwood: "Once you feel you know everything, you're done. You're either repetitive or boring, or both."
This notion reminded me of my college days when we'd sit or lie around on the college green at Ohio University talking about the meaning of life. There was this one fellow there who always said the same thing. "We're born, we procreate, and then we die." The first time he said it was cool, it seemed sort of a nugget to chew on. He had a professorial attitude, deep voice, beard and avante gard dark shades with turtleneck look. On another occasion we were discussing something and he was there. The only words he spoke were, "We're born, we procreate, and then we die." Months later, again the same.
Evidently he had had a profound LSD experience and "figured out the universe" and knew all he needed to know, because he'd definitely become repetitive and boring. The "cool" mystique that we originally saw in him never went beyond being a veneer. He was a guy you couldn't get to know. And he never got to know us. He was as interesting as a one trick pony.
If we want to learn new things, we need to explore the world around us, and inside others... to listen and hear and see in new ways. Ask questions. Pay attention. And "maybe even eavesdrop." There are new things to discover all around you. This is the fodder for new ideas. And underneath it all you may even hear gentle rumbles of the voice of God.
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