JOIN USWith imagination comes progress. The aviation industry was born with two men of extraordinary imagination. The Wright Brothers imagined a world where humans would fly like birds.
The number of people flying across continents today is the fruit of the seed of their imagination. More recently, Bill Gates imagined every person with his own personal computer with which he could work and be connected wireless across the globe. With his imagination started the revolution of the lap-top and supersonic computer age of the century. From the steam engine to generating solar power and from sky scrapers to CT Scanners, modern conveniences are all the incredible results of the powers of man’s imagination.
Given this unbelievable powers of man’s imagination, great wonders could be unfolded with this one single weapon in his hands. Even so, seldom do ordinary men indulge themselves in the wise use of their imaginative powers.
The reason why man’s imagination is not put to a comprehensive use is probably due to the fact that as he grows older he loses out on his natural sense of curiosity, falling prey to life’s routine and commitments. Caught in the rush of daily affairs, man is lost in the mundane rhythm of ordinary existence. He goes about the day with monotonous movements, sleep walking with no imagination. The inquisitive child in a man remains dormant and he lives like a zombie for much of his adult life.
This reality is not conducive to a vibrant imagination. For, imagination can spring and bloom only when the mind is alive and wired to the surroundings with a curious bent. In 1901, H C Booth was sitting in a rocking chair on his front porch, watching the sun set. Living in the Midwest of America, he was also watching the dust blow. As he contemplated the scene, he wondered, “What if we could reverse the wind? Then instead of blowing dust, we could pull dust.” Later that year, he invented the vacuum cleaner. A simple piece of imagination that swept his mind was channelised and a very useful modern convenience was created.
The full use of our imagination, therefore, needs to be tapped. For, as a thinker put it, “If you live your life out of memory, you live out of history. That’s what once was. If you live out of your imagination, you live out of your potential. That’s what can be.”Training ourselves and our younger generation in expanding our imagination will result in innovative solutions and viable options for many contemporary problems.In the words of Henry J Taylor, “Imagination lit every lamp in this country, built every church, performed every act of kindness and progress, created more and better things for more people. It is the priceless ingredient for a better day.”