090 Imagination and Mindfulness Weekends With Bruce Langford

Imagination and mindfulness fits together beautifully. What does imagination conjure up for you? For me, I think of children. I think of the book, Alice in Wonderland, by Luis Carroll. There is so much to think about in that book that connects imagination with mindfulness.

The topic of imagination takes me back to my childhood. Even though I have four brothers and two sisters, I felt alone a lot of the time. My brothers were off doing other things. My mom suggested I go visit Frieny who lived back by the tree. I'd ride my bike there and spend time fully immersed in my imagination.

Looking back, I have a different perspective. At times in my life people would imply that people who had an imaginary friend as a child, were not quite like the rest of us. Maybe something was off about that person.

Now I believe it is completely healthy for kids to use their vivid imaginations and I look back and think it was totally cool to use my creativity the way I did.

When I was creating my anti-bullying presentations, I decided to use my creativity to write songs to grab the attention of children and adults. I believed a great way to connect with the world and share a message was to create something.

I remember going back to a school where I had presented anti-bullying shows three years earlier. The students had moved on to higher grades, but still remembered many of the catchy songs I had shared with them during my first visit.

One of the songs was called, "Confidence". I believe we need to share concepts of confidence with children because that is sometimes the reason why kids are picked on, is because they don't exhibit enough confidence. Sometimes we just have to take a deep breath and show confidence. Using mindfulness concepts can also help children to be more confident.

Some days I would sit at the piano and think about composing a song about a particular topic, like confidence for instance. At first I'd feel blocked, but then I'd realize it was simply a matter of allowing myself to just go there, to relax. And what would relax my mind and not put pressure on myself?

I'd put my hands on the keyboard, take a breath and just let my fingers play certain notes and melodies. I'd experiment with catchy sounds and before long I'd be thinking about words and thoughts that had to do with that topic.

I'd ask myself, 'What are three major thoughts about this topic?'. Then I'd think of three other thoughts to support each of the major thoughts. Before long I'd have a song. I love writing songs and it's kind of funny that some of the best songs just seem to come randomly.

The Wizard of Oz is a great movie to think about when we think about the topic of mindfulness. It has incredible messages for entrepreneurs and really anybody who is interested in how imagination relates to mindfulness.

Quotes:

• Imagination is the only weapon in the war against reality. Lewis Carroll - Alice in Wonderland
• The best use of imagination is creativity. The worst use of imagination is anxiety. Deepak Chopra
• I think the world needs happy people with a high dose of crazy and a quiet conscience. Anon
• Everything you can imagine is real. ― Pablo Picasso
• “A child's spirit is like a child, you can never catch it by running after it; you must stand still, and, for love, it will soon itself come back.” ― Arthur Miller, The Crucible
• "We are only what we always were.” ― Arthur Miller, The Crucible

Books:

Alice in Wonderland by Luis Carroll

The Wizard of Oz

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