Life Prescription Mind: Imagination
- constance holdip
- Mar 9, 2019
- 4 min read
Updated: Oct 31, 2019
My life has never been a straight line. I've taken so many different paths following my passions. Trust me it has not been an easy way to live and exist but it's been fun adventurous and interesting. I wouldn't recommend all of the twist and turns that I have taken but I do recommend that you find something that you can tap into ,that thing that excites you, sometimes won't let you sleep, and something you are willing to sacrifice personal comfort for.
Many times throughout my journey, the work didn't pay a lot of money which caused a great deal of stress being a single parent in my earlier years, yet we made it. But my dreams have always been 3-d inside of me. My imagination has always been vivid. I've tackled some dreams and I had no former experience, skills or education with some projects but I did it anyway. Jumping in has stretched me as a human being.
I am a creative individual , and my imagination really developed out of trying to circumvent the pain of growing up in domestic violence, and then later in an emotional abusive marriage.
As a child I made up worlds, which I had no idea what I was doing at the time. I was teaching myself how to be a story teller, I was also creating in my mind a better and safer place for my existence. I love stories and books. Books over the years kept my sanity as a young black female child growing up in the hood. My mother love for books and her love for fashion created a world in which we both could be relieved from the harsh world of domestic violence, racism and all of the isms growing up in the fifties and the sixties in America.
The desire to be more and experience more was created in my mind, it has been my saving grace.
I 've had millions of jobs, my first job at 16 years old was working in a movie theatre. I applied for an usher and concession girl. Now mind you back in the day they actually hired people to usher you to your seats, and many did not look like me . But I was clever enough to get around the interview. In my interview I was asked what are your hobbies? My answer was reading, writing and horse back riding. Trust me I had never been on a horse before in my life at the time. But in my mind I had ridden a horse a thousand times with sheer grace and abandonment. As a matter of fact one of my favorite mind visuals is riding a horse and I have on a hat and the hat is flying off of my head and my locks are blowing wildly in the wind. For me it's sheer freedom. Needles to say I got the job.
One of my favorite jobs was working with children in gang infested neighborhoods, with violence occurring at an alarmingly high rate daily. I had received my AA degree in early child development and working on a teacher's degree, which I switched to a social work degree while working with those beautiful kids. I love those children, they were so eager to learn. I remembered reading a book to them about the beach, many of them had never been to the beach, no experience of the sounds of water ebbing and flowing, no feeling of the whisk of damp air in your lungs, and warm sand beneath your feet . So one day we created a beach , we turned off the lights, I actually brought dirt, towels and pails, we had flash lights, food and music that sounded like waves. Occasionally I took a water bottle and lightly sprayed them , they loved it.
Many of the children came from hardship which I truly understood it was close to my heart, my struggles as a child and being a single parent. I wanted them to find mind expansion in books, imagination and creativity. I wanted them to use their imaginations, to create worlds beyond their present reality. Then perhaps they would develop a curiosity to explore beyond their present circumstances, and create a better life.
Since then I have used my imagination to experience so many adventures, such as going on vacation with a friend some years ago to Miami, The ABFF( The American Black Film Festival) It was electric, so many young writers, producers, trying to get their films made. So with no experience and a little research I wrote a screenplay it's registered with the Writer's Guild West entitled Full Circle. I am also the author of a self help book 365 Days To Authenticity, and working on my second book for children "In The Company of Giants".
I 've written plays for my church, children's plays for a school project, started a coaching business, created workshops for women empowerment, learned floral design, interior design, ( no formal education with some of these projects) and took a trip to my beloved Paris. When I walked into the "Louvre" the ultimate museum, for the first time I thought truly I must be in heaven. Experiencing the majesty of the Vatican in Rome, and the wonder of the Picasso Museum in Barcelona all started with books and imagination.
Developing the imagination is a strong tool for combating the natural world when the reality around you is bleak, dark and negative. Self development is key to stretching your person and coming out of your comfort zone. Risk taking is vital to learn who you are, your natural gifts and developing them. Courage develops confidence. There is no fix rule or pattern for individuals seeking to become. The mind is an unlimited world!
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