What Happened to Imagination?

What Happened to Imagination?

Remember when a stick wasn’t just a stick?

It was a sword, a wand, a walking stick, a horse, a lightsaber, or a microphone for your imaginary concert in the driveway. A cardboard box was a spaceship, a race car, or a secret clubhouse that required a password to enter (usually something incredibly complex like “pizza”). The world wasn’t just what it was. It was what it could be.

So... what happened?

Where did imagination go?

Somewhere along the way, it seems we traded in “make-believe” for “make-do.” We became practical. Efficient. Responsible. We learned how to color inside the lines, keep our feet on the ground, and stop talking to ourselves in public. We were told to grow up. To stop daydreaming. To be realistic.

But at what cost?

We used to chase fireflies and believe they were little stars. Now we chase deadlines. We used to narrate our bike rides like we were racing in the Tour de France. Now we narrate our commutes with “Ugh, traffic again.” We once believed the clouds were ships, castles, or dragons. Now we just hope they don’t bring rain on our day off.

We’ve become experts in logic, productivity, and time management. But many of us have forgotten how to wonder.

Imagination isn’t just for kids. It’s not something we outgrow. It’s something we unlearn slowly, often without realizing it. But here’s the good news. It’s still there. It’s buried under to-do lists and calendar invites, but it’s there. Waiting.

It shows up when we read a book that sweeps us away. When we look up at the stars and remember how small we are and how much is still out there. It shows up when a song stirs something in us, or when a scent brings back a memory so vivid it feels like time travel. It shows up when a child hands you a plastic dinosaur and says, “He wants to talk to you.” And somehow, you believe it.

We need imagination now more than ever. Not just to entertain us, but to restore us. To lift us from the weight of the world and remind us that things can be different. Better. Beautiful.

Imagination creates. It builds what doesn't exist. It dreams when reality feels heavy. It dares to see not just what is, but what could be. That’s not childish. That’s human.

So today, I invite you to remember.

Remember what it felt like to build castles out of couch cushions. To wear a cape and believe you could fly. To draw dragons, or design cities, or host tea parties for your stuffed animals and think, Yeah, this is absolutely real.

And maybe, just maybe, do something imaginative today.

Make up a story. Doodle in the margins. Lay in the grass and find shapes in the clouds. Talk to your dog and pretend he talks back. (I already know what Cooper would say, and it’s probably judgmental.) Let yourself play, wonder, and daydream again.

Because imagination hasn’t gone anywhere. It’s just waiting for you to say, “Let’s pretend...”

And honestly? The world could use a little more pretending. A little more wonder. A little more magic.

So pick up the stick.

The adventure is still out there.