Stunningly Weird

Recently, I had a conversation with a friend in which I said that I was fascinated by a not-so-common subject. I felt I needed to explain myself, which made me consider how exactly I define 'fascinating' (because defining terms is critical). That is how I came up with the phrase 'stunningly weird'.

As I see it, the quality that makes something fascinating is that it stuns me. I become transfixed on the subject and it stops all of my thoughts and actions for a period. Beyond that, though, it needs to maintain a mystery. Once I understand a subject, it becomes nothing more than a collection of facts. A subject which I can see actively, regularly, and still not understand is just plain weird to me (and a fair number of subjects in life are like that).

Practically every thing that both captivates and confounds you will seem to be fascinating. And everything that is fascinating should captivate and confound you. It's a mutual relationship, one not to argue with or fight against, but simply accept and understand.

Everybody should be fascinated by something. If you have nothing stunningly weird in your mind, the world must be a sad, boring place. And if you really do believe that, I challenge you to find one thing which amazes you. Most likely, the best place to start looking is your hobbies. If something matters enough to invest time into, even if it is just watching TV, there is something there compelling you to do it. It's probably something fascinating.