imagine

Imagination is quite honestly one of my most favorite possibilities in human nature, the ability to dream and harness hope is nothing short of sacred.

Part of my personal mission statement that I created back in college says, I will never become too old to play and be silly, neither will I forget the joy I find in laughter. We have an opportunity in childhood, a window in our soul that is open and searching, longing to believe in something. The love of a parent, the man in the moon, the tooth fairy, Santa Claus, we are filled with wonder and new discoveries every day. We are discerning what’s real. This last visit to Disney world the question finally came, is this real, is that real, there’s a line now that didn’t used to be there and unfortunately we all reach some point in life where “we put away childish things” and just grow up.

Which makes me think of an old fairy tale, Peter Pan. It’s a beautiful tale of a little boy who lived in Never Never Land and refused to grow up, but you know, the real hero of the story to me is Wendy Darling (and not because she’s a girl) Wendy stands out and is special to me for a few reasons.

First, she didn’t need to see Never Never Land to believe, she didn’t need the grand adventures to make the world come alive for herself and her two younger brothers John and Michael. Each night she told stories, wildly imaginative stories, Stories filled with swashbuckling chaos, love, and villanry. In fact, it was these stories that lured Peter to her window. The boy who had it all, who never had to grow up, who lived adventure everyday was drawn to Wendy’s stories, why?

And perhaps because of her openess she receives an invitation to go on a journey. What a gift she experienced delving into Neverland, completely and utterly immersing herself in imagination and childhood and dreams. She tasted the marrow of childhood and it was sweet. But unlike Peter she wanted to grow up, she knew that the journey to adulthood would also be an adventure that she wouldn’t want to miss.

The way I see it, Peter was trapped in folly. Sure he had fun everyday but he was afraid of responsibility when in fact responsibility is what gives us purpose. When we have charge over something we are empowered to be our best self and to live outside of ourself. Think about it, even in the smallest sense of the word. Let’s say it’s a goldfish that you brought home- I’d bet its very presence creates a diligence in you that wasn’t there before? Do you check on it daily? Do you ensure it has food and clean water? Yes. why? Because it depends on you. What about a garden, what if you were responsible for a garden, would you tend the soil? See that it got water? Yes. why? Because it wouldn’t grow without you. So what am I getting at? We were made for responsiblity, dominion of earth and sky and sea. But not in a way that would bog us down, in a way that would bring us life, in a way that would give life. There is a verse in the Old Testament scrpitures that says all of creation is longing for the sons and daughters of God to be made manifest in the world. Simply put, the world needs you.

Wendy went back to London, she courageously faced life adolescense, she grew up, she fell in love, she became a mother. The beautiful thing about our leading lady is that as she became an adult she kept her imagination. She carried the heart of a child. You see the heart of a child is not the lawlessness and chaos of a world without structure and rules like Neverland. The heart of a child says anything is possible if you just believe, it says that there are no limits if you try hard hard enough, it says every stranger is one step away of being a lasting friend, it says that if you follow the second star to the right you’ll end up in a mangificently magical world unlike any other… This may seem like head in the could talk to some, like nonsense, like reckless optimism. But I truly believe that the gift of imagination in childhood are our first lessons in hope and faith. And if we can cultivate it in our lives I believe it will keep us from being bogged down by the responsibility and jaded by the adultness of life.

How you ever looked at a child on a playground, you’ve got to admit the carefreeness is desireable. And how about how quickly they get over a bump on the head, or a quarrel with a friend. And how sweet the laughter of a baby- there’s nothing like that deep genuine giggle. When is it that we start caring so deeply what others think of us? What age is it that we stop skipping and singing out loud? When do we stop laughing deeply at the right things and starting laughing at things that cause others pain? How is it that Wendy upon growing up doesn’t loose her ability to imagine? You find her telling stories to her young children and Peter still on the window, still allured by her words…

I long for the freedom of a child’s spirit that laughs at what’s pure, that skips into buildings, and sings with the birds. I live to imagine a world that is brighter, friendships that span cultures, environments that are sustainable, lifetimes that are filled with opportunity and hearts that are filled with love. While I can see that my imaginings may seem unreachable they are the very thing that fill me with hope. And it is this HOPE that will drive me and others take dreams and turn them into realities.

Margaret Mead once said, “Never doubt a small group of thoughtful citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.”