Last week I spoke to my local chapter of Rotary. I love Rotarians. Consistently over the decades, whenever and wherever I’ve met them, whatever they do for a living, however young or old they are or whatever they look like, Rotarians are some of the most good-natured, civic-minded people around.

As I always do, I asked my audience: “What makes you curious? What do you really want to learn?” Over the years, I’ve gotten used to receiving answers that are all over the map. That’s the idea – to rekindle our passionate curiosity and remind ourselves that every question is the beginning of an interdisciplinary exploration that takes us everywhere we need to go. People have asked me all sorts of things, from the politics of indoor plumbing to the Zen of juggling to the secret

ingredients of meatballs to the physics of black holes. The only predictable element of this exercise is that every question will start an interesting conversation. 

The Rotarians were great sports. They wrote down their answers and passed me their papers. And this time I was surprised by the lack of variety. Apart from some outliers about the desert climate, changing habits, and improving workflow, the overwhelming majority were variations on one theme: How can we overcome divisive politics and an emerging constitutional crisis to get along with each other better and improve our society?

I've thought about this a lot.

So, in the spirit of Open-Source Learning's Civic Fitness, and in response to my dear Rotarians, who I suspect are representative of many Americans wondering how we manage to move through these challenging times, I’m updating last year’s Interdependence Day note. Have a safe, happy Fourth.

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Happy Interdependence Day! Here in Open-Source Learning land, ‘tis the season for Civic Fitness. We’ve never needed each other more.

Every year I watch people celebrate The Fourth of July and I catch myself thinking… Are we celebrating the same thing? King George and declarations and Boston and all that? A country founded on ideas? Then I imagine everyone at the backyard BBQ reading my mind and saying something like: “Jeez, man, stop thinking so much. Have a beer, grab something off the grill, and relax."

I love connecting with people and seeing the world through their eyes. But if you know me, or even if you’ve spent eleven seconds reading my newsletters, blog posts, or my latest book, you already know I can't take my brain off the leash when the stakes are this high.

It’s no accident that the first two Open-Source Learning fitnesses are mental and physical. In order to help clients and students be at their best, I want to keep my own mind and body in good working order. Most beer isn’t worth the neurotoxic ethanol bite out of my memory and cognitive function. I like feeling energetic and I like the way my wife looks at my abs, so I also don’t want the bloat or the empty calories. And while I do still love a good steak or burger once in a while, most meat isn’t worth the antibiotics, growth hormones, and general sad grossness that comes with factory farming. Sorry. I know this may sound... whatever. Relaxing the way it’s portrayed in commercials isn’t what I do to relax.

Apart from the food and drink, why harsh the mellow and carry on about Civic Fitness when we can just party? Because some parties are better than others by design. Our lives are better when our social systems function well. We can participate in organizations, politics, and society just as intentionally as we can plan a great party. For example, we party better when our limbic systems don’t land us in escalating conflict or emergency rooms. We party best when acknowledge that we’re all in it together, and we care about maintaining our relationships at least as much as parroting partisan bumper stickers. 

So go right on ahead and party! Declare interdependence with your families, friend groups, neighborhoods, clubs, representative democracies and other social systems. It doesn't take much. Ask how someone is – and then take a moment to really listen and care about what they say next. Pick up a piece of litter. Give blood (before you drink!). Volunteer. Change your mind. Put a relationship above principle. Donate to a cause. Have a meaningful conversation.

Whatever seems like a big deal in this moment probably isn't, so remember to ooh and ahh with friends and strangers alike at the bigger picture, because wonder is awesome and awe can be wonderful. Fireworks are at their best when they’re shared. 

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Who do you depend on? Who depends on you? Drop me a line – I’m curious!

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Open-Source Learning is yours. Free. Get the white paper here. Use what works and customize whatever you need, however you want. I’m here to help.

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Curiosity is worth practicing. That’s how we get better at it. When it’s done particularly well, curiosity can be elevated to an art form. Curiosity makes life worth living. I am literally Curious AF. And now you can be too! Click HERE to unlock your free membership subscription. 

Here is a taste of what I’m doing, reading, watching, and thinking about.

What I’m Listening To –

“You Gotta Serve Somebody” by Bob Dylan. It’s a good reminder. And if you’re worried that the wealthy and powerful among us have forgotten that lesson, have a restorative listen to Tom Morello’s “The Iron Wheel.” When Morello sings the chorus about those who spin the wheel, I do believe he means it.

Digital Security Issue I'm Thinking About –

Last week Cybernews reported the most massive data breach in history: 30 exposed datasets amounting to 16 BILLION login credentials. According to researchers, “This is not just a leak – it’s a blueprint for mass exploitation. With over 16 billion login records exposed, cybercriminals now have unprecedented access to personal credentials that can be used for account takeover, identity theft, and highly targeted phishing. What’s especially concerning is the structure and recency of these datasets – these aren’t just old breaches being recycled. This is fresh, weaponizable intelligence at scale.”

In a world where each day seems to bring something new to worry about (I'm writing this paragraph about 30 minutes after learning (a) my toilet is leaking, (b) we bombed Iran, and (c) the Senate's budget reconciliation bill was amended to make 258 million acres of forest service and BLM land available for sale – including watersheds that we depend on), I offer both empathy and solutions. Change your passwords frequently. Use complicated strings of letters, numbers, and symbols that require a password manager to remember. Use two-factor authentication. And, wherever possible use passkeys instead of passwords. (Note: I'm no expert in cybersecurity, and I know some of you are, so please feel free to reply with any updated suggestions or insights.)

What I’m Reading –

As I mentioned at the top of this week’s edition, for decades now I’ve been using questions to help groups of all kinds transform into learning communities. When I taught in high school classrooms, I called these Big Questions and I introduced them this way. So I was delighted when I began learning more about the work of Nobel-winning physicist Frank Wilczek and found his book A Beautiful Question, which begins: “This book is a long meditation on a single question: Does the world embody beautiful ideas?” Wilczek goes on to ask: Is the world a work of art?” 

I’m looking forward to Wilczek’s attempt to answer, especially after reading this blurb by Lawrence Krauss: “This delightful series of meditations on the nature of beauty and the physical universe roams from music to color vision to fundamental ideas at the very forefront of physics today. In lesser hands such a romp could easily degenerate into a kind of new-age mystical mambo jumbo. However, Frank Wilczek is one of the deepest, most reactive, and most knowledgeable theoretical physicists alive today. Read him or listen to him and you will never think about the universe the same way again. And if your experience is like mine over the years, you will definitely be the better for it.”

Quote I’m pondering —

I cut your hair the way I cook.

– My lovely wife

Thank you for reading! This publication is a lovingly cultivated, hand-rolled, barrel-aged, ad-free, AI-free, 100% organic, anti-algorithm, zero calorie, high protein, completely reader-supported publication that is not paid to endorse any political party, world religion, sports team, product or service. Please help keep it going by buying my book, hiring me to speak, or becoming a paid subscriber, which will also entitle you to upcoming web events, free consultations, discounted merchandise, and generally being the coolest person your friends know:

Best,

Know someone who is also Curious AF? Please share this edition with them!

David Preston

Educator & Author

​https://davidpreston.net​

Latest book: ACADEMY OF ONE

Header image: Our kids living the Golden Age of Childhood watching Hollywood Bowl fireworks. Via David Preston.