Saturday, February 26, 2011

What if...

... there was no such thing as gravity?

What if day didn't follow night? or vice versa? What if we only had a sort of shadowy daytime that was neither light or dark, but somewhere in between?

What if there were no such thing as stars? or seasons? Can you imagine if we lived in only one continuous season forever and ever amen?

What if we didn't have imagination?

Now, imagination. What is it about the imagination that makes us try to create something more than what we have? Why do we imagine? Why can't we just live in this world and go through life day after day in the same mundane way?

Have you ever wondered that? I have. I am right now. What is it that makes us-- writers, singers, actors, artists, everybody really-- try to co-create life? It's like we reach out and try to define life, define living. We try to extend something of ourselves, to transform the dull and mundane into something shining, brilliant, and new.

Sometimes it's because we want to show the world the hidden secret inside us, the "who I really am" part that we rarely let people see. Sometimes it's because we want to show the world a sudden brilliant ray of hope in a life that may not be hopeful at all. Sometimes it's because we want to change the world.

I wonder if that's why people are constantly asking "what if?" What if the world ended tomorrow? What if there was no such thing as heat? What if the Flood in the time of Noah never happened? What if there was no technology? What if God didn't know what He was doing?

What if you're reading this post, and the electricity goes out? What would you do?

I imagine you'd find out.

13 comments:

  1. I lived in Mexico once. Not much in the way of seasons there :)

    I love What Ifs, they're a great way to spark story ideas. To me, imagination is a way of making life more fun, interesting and also a way of empathising with people. You need imagination to put yourself in someone else's shoes. People who don't have much imagination (and there are plenty of them about) live much poorer lives.

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  2. It sounds like you have a lot of good story ideas here!

    A world without imagination would be horrible! Not the place for me.

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  3. Here's a great quote from Einstein on imagination that says it well:
    “Imagination is more important than knowledge. For knowledge is limited to all we now know and understand, while imagination embraces the entire world, and all there ever will be to know and understand.”

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  4. Hello Debra! Thanks for joining.

    Oooh, Catherine! I love that quote!

    Girl Friday, I've heard that Mexico is pretty much same old, same old. Urgh. Even if winter isn't my favourite month, I do need some diversity. :-)

    Kelly, wouldn't it be awful if we are all just a bunch of automatons? **shudder** No imagination sounds like H***! :-)

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  5. Hey Cat,
    What a great post! I guess the answer to the question of imagination is that humans are given that as one of our greatest gifts. Otherwise as you said we would never evolve, never get better, and never make things around us any better. I love it! D don’t you?!
    Thanks for such a philosophical post. I makes me love being a creative person even more :D

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  6. Cat, this is an excellent post! I'd hate to be without imagination, I can't even bear to think of such a life!

    If the electricity had gone out while I was reading, I would have made up my own ending and posted it when the power came back!

    Lady A x

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  7. Hi Cat, This is my first time visiting your blog. What if it was one season? I hope it wouldn't be winter all year round. Got me on the what-if roll.

    Patricia

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  8. If we loose imagination, we loose the freedom to choose for ourselves.

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  9. If I ever got a tattoo, "What if" would be it :)

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  10. Catherine, YAY! I'm glad when a post of mine makes you feel more creative. :)

    Lady Antimony, thanks so much. Yeah, I generally write my stuff longhand first, so even if I don't have electricity, I've still got my pens and paper. LOL

    Patricia, thanks for coming over. I'm glad you're what iffing yourself to death! All those lovely ideas...

    Shelly, imagination is what sometimes gets me through the days. I can pretend to be someone more than I drearily am. :)

    Samantha... LOL!!

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  11. "What if's" are great for creativity, and exhausting for reality. At least that's what my therapist says. :)

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  12. I agree, Lauren. Thanks for posting! I'm going to pop over to your blog and see what you've got cooking. :)

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