Children have big imaginations because they still believe that anything is possible. They are new to this world, and they come here from the place where beings know that anything really is possible. This knowledge is lost for most of us as we grow into adults.
Though we may have been here before, and we come into our lives with some inner knowledge of the Truth, children (like we adults) often misconstrue and misunderstand the words we hear and the things we see. I believe that much of this is the result of our active imaginations.
Who hasn't marveled at the enthusiastic manner our little ones go about learning about their world. Children are naturally curious and are naturally eager learners. That is, if their curiosity is encouraged.
Imagination is doubtlessly a wonderful ability and is probably one major human ability that has been responsible for our evolution. Our children have inventive minds, and watching them using their big imaginations at play is a delightful experience.
Yet the child's truly joyful imagination is something that seems to dissipate as we grow and try to fit into the adult world that expects conformity. But our imagination is not something we actually lose. it is always at work even when we don't realize it. The problem arises when we adults, like children, don't always get things right. We imagine demons when there aren't any. We imagine enemies even when they don't exist. We imagine horrifying future events and can let our fears control us.
Our human minds are always trying to make sense of what we see and what we hear. This is a basic survival instinct. The ability to make connections has helped our species survive; yet it can also be a cause for fear and pain. Especially when we don't have all the facts. Our misconceptions can easily take form and solidify in misunderstanding and fear.
The child is not sure what is real and what is not. I guess we adults often have the same problem. But most adults know that bad dreams are not real. Everything is real to small children. Bad dreams frighten them. I guess they frighten us too, but not quite as much.
Our little granddaughter has been having some bad dreams. When her parents were trying to comfort her, they must have used the word "nightmare". She is little and misunderstood the word, translating it in her mind to "the night mirror". She had personalized the concept, gave it form and personality and made it real.
And yes, mirrors can be very scary. In fact, as a child, I was afraid of mirrors. I worried about what was behind them, and about scary monsters that lived in them. I'm not sure what that was all about, but the story about little Isabella's fear felt familiar to me and awakened that old memory. As an adult, I know that nothing but walls are usually behind the mirrors in our homes, and that scary monsters don't actually live inside them, but sometimes they still give me an eerie feeling.
I'm working on story to calm Isabella's fears. And, now that I'm talking about it, probably to calm mine as well. Ah, that darn Inner Child. No matter how old we might get, the Inner Child remains alive and well, and still kicking within us.
Posted by Judi at May 8, 2011 8:47 PM | TrackBack