Imagination moving the World: Paper in a Post

"On the human imagination events produce the effects of time. Thus, he who has traveled far and seen much is apt to fancy that he has lived long." “But Anne with her elbows on the window sill, her soft cheek laid against her clasped hands, and her eyes filled with visions, looked out unheedingly across city roof and spire to that glorious dome of sunset sky and wove her dreams of a possible future from the golden tissue of youth's own optimism. All the Beyond was hers, with its possibilities lurking rosily in the oncoming years — each year a rose of promise to be woven into an immortal chaplet.”

Since the beginning, myth and imagination has influenced how we see the world. Our history books are filled with the romanticized idea of events that actually occurred. In Anne of Green Gables, Anne is consistently known as a character with a knack for imagination. While many think that daydreaming and imagination is a way to hide from reality, this is not true. Our imaginations are a product of human labor. For some, this comes easily, but for others they struggle to see beyond the scope of their own reality. By using our creativity and ability to re-imagine our own personal world in blogs, today's technology allows each of us to take part in the transformation and growth of our culture. 

In Anne of Green Gables, one of the main characters, Matthew Cuthbert, is known for being shy and unable to speak his mind to women. He is stuck in his own boring, daily routine. When he and his sister, Marilla, plan on adopting a young boy to help around the farm, they accidentally get a girl instead- Anne. While Marilla wants to send Anne back to the orphanage, Matthew imagines what his life would be like with a talkative young girl around. From the moment Anne and Matthew left, her imagination began to change the way Matthew saw the world around him. In that one instant where he allowed his imagination to run free, he let his heart open to this love starved little girl, and it ended up changing his life forever. Anne is known for saying,"It is delightful when your dreams come true, isn't it?" Anne had a way of not using her imagination just to escape the world, but to influence her life and the lives of others. 

In one particular article, called "Do you use your Imagination?," by Remez Sasson, the definition of imagination is questioned. It isn't a useless waste of time, but the ability to visualize different situations and events. By using this tool, we can prepare ourselves for different problems that may arise, plan events, and create something completely new. In a more romantic sense, one blogger named John claimed that there is a traditional "understanding imagination as the spiritual heart of the human person." By combining both of these ideas, it can be argued that imagination is both useful and romantic. It covers every aspect of human life. It allows us to be practical and  accomplish things that we need to do daily, while still allowing us to show a reflection of what lies within our hearts. 

While talking to my cohorts and many bloggers within the extensive blogging world, I have realized that there are many different types of blogs and reasons for wanting to share your thoughts with the world. Blogs are unique, because unlike other social media, they are used for more than just talking to friends or relating exactly what we are doing every minute of the day. They are forums for expressions, and allow creativity to flourish, and are ways to expand our hobbies and interests. Even more than that, they allow our ideas to grow and expand by allowing the world to comment on our thoughts and creations. This "social proof," that our ideas are relevant and interesting to someone other than ourselves changes the way we think. By allowing others to engaged in our imaginations, we transform the way we think and feel. Our imaginations have the ability to move our lives in different directions than we originally expected. It is important to use blogs not just as an online journal, but as a way to really express the way we think and to be creative in a social atmosphere. By allowing the two way street of letting our ideas influence others, and others creations spark our own ideas, the online culture of letting imagination run wild and free directly affects our lives.