Things We Forget

I’d talk to Rosa Parks. I’d like to know what quiet courage feels like in the moment it becomes history.

I’d meet Nikola Tesla. I’d want to feel the spark of his imagination up close.

I’d meet Joan of Arc. I would like to learn how she held onto conviction when everyone around her doubted her.

I’d sit with Emily Dickinson. I’d want to know how she kept writing for a world that wouldn’t read her until she was gone.

If I could meet a historical figure, it would be Marie Salomea Skłodowska-Curie. Marie Curie was the first woman to win a Nobel Prize, the first person to win a Nobel…

I’d meet Alan Turing. I want to thank him for brilliance the world didn’t understand in time.

I’d talk to Audrey Hepburn about kindness—how she carried glamour and humility at the same time.

I’d meet Malcom X. I’d ask him about transformation—how a person can shift so boldly and so publicly.

I’d choose Queen Elizabeth I. I want to understand the weight of a crown carried so young.

I’d meet Albert Einstein. I want to know what ideas felt like before they became theories.