This is beautiful. I have been thinking about this a lot lately...especially when it comes to raising a boy, at what point does the world tell him he had to stop imagining and playing. In our home,we nurture it, the play, the imagination all of it. Thank you for this beautiful reminder, I am excited for the direction you are heading in.
"I don’t want my boys to grow up with a fear of being left alone with their own thoughts, instead, I would love to see them using those sacred moments as time to imagine possibilities." Yes and yes again. This reminds me of Daniel Quinn's words in his novel The Story of B: "If the world is saved, it will not be saved by old minds with new programs but by new minds with no programs at all." If parents (especially mothers, who usually bear primary responsibility for directly influencing the child's subconscious in the earliest years) are given the gift of cultivating new minds, the ability to flourish the imagination will be a large part of those "new minds". What a delight to hear from you again, and what a lovely shift for your writing here!
This is such a beautiful post! I'm a mum of two boys now aged 7 and 9 and I still love watching them use their imaginations whether they're drawing comics or playing with lego.
Thanks Naomi, how great is Lego! My oldest is obsessed. They can really let their imaginations soar while creating. And your son making comics is so cool! I’m looking forward to seeing how my boys imaginations evolve as they grow. X
A beautiful evolution of your words and I can’t wait to read more. I witness such an amazing imagination in my eldest at the moment, she is constantly thinking up stories and games… I’m not always the best at imaginative play but I do use it for other things… pictures and stories and creativity. I’ve always had a very vivid imagination and my Mother is an artist so I think that is probably what helped it stay alive in me. And they have always encouraged me to go go after my dreams even when they have been quite wild. I remember when I was 11/12 me and my friend spent an entire school trip pretending we were on ponies to make it less boring. All the other kids were ‘too grown up’ to play but we had such a blast. Xxx
Hahaha Yes for being ponies!! If I had of been on that trip I would have been right with you! I held onto my childhood as long as I could, growing up seemed lame.
Yes, the age of four is really unlocking the most extraordinary things in my oldest mind. I think all the ways we use our creativity has a trickle down effect on our kids. To see us busy creating in general I’m sure must have a beautiful effect on them.
I love this shift to "A Life of Wonder", Tansie. Beautiful.
My boys don't indulge in the kind of imaginative play they used to when they were younger, but one of their favourite topics of conversation is still, "What if...?" I love listening to their what if conversations! What if we could climb onto the roof and fly across the city then dive into the sea and swim with whales? What if we could live in the biggest house in the world and invite all our friends and family to stay there and have adventures together? It makes me realise that it's asking the what ifs that makes it possible to imagine our way into our dream lives.
Oohh the What If game sounds fun! Yes I think there are so many different ways to be imaginative, not just through make believe games. You must have seen so many different stages already of their imaginations.
This was so beautiful. I found it so incredible when my son reached an age where he started to use his imagination. It’s so amazing watching them play in their little worlds 😍
We also have lots of talk of home and my son tells us all about the house he wants to build us, the gardens it will have, and what colours he is going to paint the rooms. He’ll bring the topic up himself 🥲
Oohhh it’s just the greatest feeling isn’t it, getting to peer inside their whimsical minds! The older Sonny gets the more his inner worlds are blossoming, having conversations with him now is my favourite thing.
Thanks Emma, yes, I feel like with boys there is much pressure for them to appear tough and cool and they start to get older. I dearly hope I can help them grow into kids that won’t feel that pressure. 💛
This was so beautiful. I found it so incredible when my son reached an age where he started to use his imagination. It’s so amazing watching them play in their little worlds 😍
We also have lots of talk of home and my son tells us all about the house he wants to build us, the gardens it will have, and what colours he is going to paint the rooms. He’ll bring the topic up himself 🥲
This is beautiful. I have been thinking about this a lot lately...especially when it comes to raising a boy, at what point does the world tell him he had to stop imagining and playing. In our home,we nurture it, the play, the imagination all of it. Thank you for this beautiful reminder, I am excited for the direction you are heading in.
"I don’t want my boys to grow up with a fear of being left alone with their own thoughts, instead, I would love to see them using those sacred moments as time to imagine possibilities." Yes and yes again. This reminds me of Daniel Quinn's words in his novel The Story of B: "If the world is saved, it will not be saved by old minds with new programs but by new minds with no programs at all." If parents (especially mothers, who usually bear primary responsibility for directly influencing the child's subconscious in the earliest years) are given the gift of cultivating new minds, the ability to flourish the imagination will be a large part of those "new minds". What a delight to hear from you again, and what a lovely shift for your writing here!
Hi Jan, I love that quote, I need to read that book now!
We really are tasked with such a precious
Responsibility, how grateful I feel to be able to help cultivate their minds to contribute to a more creative and feeling new world. X
This is such a beautiful post! I'm a mum of two boys now aged 7 and 9 and I still love watching them use their imaginations whether they're drawing comics or playing with lego.
Thanks Naomi, how great is Lego! My oldest is obsessed. They can really let their imaginations soar while creating. And your son making comics is so cool! I’m looking forward to seeing how my boys imaginations evolve as they grow. X
A beautiful evolution of your words and I can’t wait to read more. I witness such an amazing imagination in my eldest at the moment, she is constantly thinking up stories and games… I’m not always the best at imaginative play but I do use it for other things… pictures and stories and creativity. I’ve always had a very vivid imagination and my Mother is an artist so I think that is probably what helped it stay alive in me. And they have always encouraged me to go go after my dreams even when they have been quite wild. I remember when I was 11/12 me and my friend spent an entire school trip pretending we were on ponies to make it less boring. All the other kids were ‘too grown up’ to play but we had such a blast. Xxx
Hahaha Yes for being ponies!! If I had of been on that trip I would have been right with you! I held onto my childhood as long as I could, growing up seemed lame.
Yes, the age of four is really unlocking the most extraordinary things in my oldest mind. I think all the ways we use our creativity has a trickle down effect on our kids. To see us busy creating in general I’m sure must have a beautiful effect on them.
OMG, you're the second youngest of six? Me too!
I love this shift to "A Life of Wonder", Tansie. Beautiful.
My boys don't indulge in the kind of imaginative play they used to when they were younger, but one of their favourite topics of conversation is still, "What if...?" I love listening to their what if conversations! What if we could climb onto the roof and fly across the city then dive into the sea and swim with whales? What if we could live in the biggest house in the world and invite all our friends and family to stay there and have adventures together? It makes me realise that it's asking the what ifs that makes it possible to imagine our way into our dream lives.
Yes, through imagination, anything is possible. 💕
Ah thanks ☺️
Oohh the What If game sounds fun! Yes I think there are so many different ways to be imaginative, not just through make believe games. You must have seen so many different stages already of their imaginations.
This was so beautiful. I found it so incredible when my son reached an age where he started to use his imagination. It’s so amazing watching them play in their little worlds 😍
We also have lots of talk of home and my son tells us all about the house he wants to build us, the gardens it will have, and what colours he is going to paint the rooms. He’ll bring the topic up himself 🥲
Oohhh it’s just the greatest feeling isn’t it, getting to peer inside their whimsical minds! The older Sonny gets the more his inner worlds are blossoming, having conversations with him now is my favourite thing.
Thanks Emma, yes, I feel like with boys there is much pressure for them to appear tough and cool and they start to get older. I dearly hope I can help them grow into kids that won’t feel that pressure. 💛
This was so beautiful. I found it so incredible when my son reached an age where he started to use his imagination. It’s so amazing watching them play in their little worlds 😍
We also have lots of talk of home and my son tells us all about the house he wants to build us, the gardens it will have, and what colours he is going to paint the rooms. He’ll bring the topic up himself 🥲