04-Mar-2010

Imagine That

Take a Time Out from Doing

If you believe in the power of the imagination and the wonders that exist beyond what can be seen and touched, that courage of the spirit is the ultimate victory in life, then you know what a struggle it is to keep from being enveloped by the cacophony that swirls around us these days.

Amid the temporal world of paying bills, taking out the trash and maintaining physical and mental health, I constantly feel the pressure to “keep it together,” but there is also this longing for daydreaming and window-gazing, for quiet time that allows the power of imagination to enter. It’s important to be able to juggle both states of being with ease and clarity, but more often than not, the soft benefits of imagination are put aside for the more tangible ones that go along with accomplishment.

If, as Native American writer, poet and artist, N. Scott Momaday says, “Our very existence consists in our imagination of ourselves,” then it seems as much an obligation to spend time reading poetry, watching an inspiring movie or listening to great music as it is to wash the dishes or balance the checkbook. The latter is surely necessary, but by evoking imagination, even the most mundane chores are sprinkled with fairy dust. When you allow for a bit of daydreaming, the clamor is staved off for awhile, leaving you with the possibility of being more truly who you are, and fostering a more peaceful and kind world through the gentle musing of imagination.

Hari Bhajan K. Khalsa
Author: Life in Two Parts
Recommended: Conversations with N. Scott Momaday