Imagination is a powerful thing. We can explore the jungles of South America or rub elbows with rocks stars of old. Our imagination is truly the strongest when we are children. We tend to let it atrophy as we get older. Luckily, I have my niece who is 5 years old and has enough imagination to power a billion ton imaginary locomotive. She has reminded me to not be so serious. She helps me and makes me recall my pretend adventures I used to enjoy when I was just a babe. She and I are proof that you’re never too old to make believe.
When I was a kid, I had so many places that I frequented in my mind. I was a mermaid any time I was in the bath tub or in water at all. At my childhood home, there was a tree swing nearby. I used to perform tricks for a world audience that would give me scores on my tricks. At the rodeo, we used to get in the bull shuts and pretend we were raging broncos getting ready to burst out into the arena.
Our imaginations were very vivid and incredibly active. Sadly, my make-believe ability began to dwindle as I got older. Once I was older, I only used my imagination for problem solving or to write a paper for one of my classes in college. I hadn’t stopped using it, I just didn’t use it for fun. That is, of course, until my nieces and nephews became a part of my life. They reminded me that you’re never too old to make believe.
Madisyn, the youngest, is only 5 years old, but she has traveled all over the state, the country, the world, and even the universe.
That’s right! MadDog has let her incredible imagination take her anywhere her heart desires. It is wonderful and warms my heart to watch her mind explore. Listening to her adventures and the conversations she has with everyone on her journey gets me excited too.
Vayda, the second oldest, is a very artistic soul and her imagination helps her to create amazing drawings, paintings, and crafts. She sees the world in a different light than Madisyn, but they both see with with imaginative eyes.
The Netflix #StreamTeam sent us a kit with all sorts of cool dragon stuff from the new original series Dragons: Race for the Edge. I let Madisyn and Vayda play with their Dragon kit and before I knew it they were running to save the day and then they were going to have a tea party! Strange to some, but this makes total sense to them. After you save the world, you have a tea party, who knew? Also, I never knew Hiccup and Toothless the dragon (from the movie and the series) were black belts in karate! They were “Hay-yawing” all over the den.
My imagination may not be what it used to be, but it is definitely being used for more than work, problems, and writing. Don’t get me wrong, I love writing and my imagination helps me insurmountably, but I was only using it for that. Spending all this time with my nieces has reminded me what it’s like to be a kid and also that you are never too old to play make-believe. What do you say, want to saddle up our unicorn and visit the mermaids in the swimming pool?
We are part of the Netflix #StreamTeam!
