When I was in fifth grade, my homeroom teacher was Mrs. Daily. Everybody knew who Mrs. Daily was years before they got to 5th grade. She had a reputation for being the toughest teacher at our elementary school, the pinnacle of our primary school education. I think what got her that reputation had a lot to do with how she pushed students to think for themselves. For instance, if a student forgot a word's meaning, then they would ask Mrs. Daily what it meant. Unlike the other teachers at the school, she wouldn't tell them what it meant but rather go over to the bookshelf and grab one of the many class dictionaries to look it up for themselves. Even if the student remembered the word, she would still have them look it up to confirm their suspicions. By the end of the year every student was grabbing the dictionary before they even raised their hand.

This week's readings reminded me of that spirit: the spirit to explore for new knowledge. Kameelah Janan Rasheed's reading in particular reminded of all of the times that I have accidentally found things I wasn't looking for when I was searching for something else. Most often for me, as a forgetful kid, I found my lost gameboy game when I was looking for my soccer cleats. There's something to be said for that exploratory journey. If I had find my iPhone for every one of my belongings, I wouldn't know my house inside and out.

However, the reading gives me a moment of pause because I think thinking divergently has it's drawbacks. In a world where you can google almost anything, it's only logical to make use of the most powerful search tools we've ever had. But at the same time a lot is lost when we don't delve into the stops we could have made on the path to our destination.