The Miriam and Ira D. Wallach Division of Art, Prints and Photographs: Picture Collection, The New York Public Library. (1901). The rabbit started violently, dropped the white kid gloves and the fan, and skurried away into the darkness as fast as he could go. Retrieved from https://digitalcollections.nypl.org/items/6cb4e924-d2cd-a6ec-e040-e00a18064787
Opportunity doesn’t always knock, because sometimes there isn’t a door. Sometimes opportunity is more of a whisper, a gentle nudge, a “possible prospect.” Planning is fine, but doing nothing but executing plans, plodding forward, eyes on the ground, day after day, negates a lot of possibilities. Raise your eyes, or risk missing (or not recognizing) the potential adventure that awaits. This serendipity of circumstance has occurred several times in my life. Joining a conversation with strangers on a subway platform has resulted in not one, but two lifelong friendships. Then there was asking foreign travelers in Central Park if they need help, and following that path to the never-before-thought-of-conclusion of translating from Danish a children’s book about death that went on to win the ALA’s Batchelder Award. “Curiouser and curiouser.”
This got me thinking about Alice in Wonderland, a favorite over many years.
Wonderland turns out to be a very fine institution of higher learning, with a sharp focus on business, and a broader focus on Life, with a capital L. While its curriculum may be a bit disorganized, the lessons are succinct, and therefore easily understood. So, as Wonderland Professor “The King” puts it, gravely, let’s “Begin at the beginning, go on until you come to the end, then stop.” So, let’s follow Alice as she tired of reading, slipped down the Rabbit Hole, and encountered all those adjunct professors – including the Dodo, the Mad Hatter, the Dormouse, and the Walrus—who were there to teach her some lessons. We’ll be visiting Wonderland U. from time to time.
Stay Open To Opportunity
Alice started to her feet, for it flashed across her mind that she had never before seen a rabbit with either a waistcoat-pocket, or a watch to take out of it, and, burning with curiosity, she ran across the field after it…
Ah, the virtue of curiosity, especially when combined with action... Follow the rabbit, the unusual, not imprudently, and not necessarily for adventure (and not because it’s some kind of new drug that promises nirvana, truly, this time), but because curiosity, far from killing the cat, can lead to very surprising places. You may think you are on the track of something, but wait, because you’re not going through the hedge, you’re going down the Rabbit Hole. As in, “Hey, I never thought of that.” Be alert for the chance off to the side. It’s what happens in science all the time. You think you’re working on a heart medication, but it turns out to provide really stunning erections for those who need that kind of thing. When the rabbit hole beckons, give it some serious consideration.