Imagination

A few days ago I saw a documentary on PBS about aging and creativity. There was a 109 year old man who was a composer, a 80-something year old who still did ballet, and a 90-something who made paintings. They went to nursing homes where the elderly were using their imaginations instead of sitting around on a chair, and they were loving it.

As it turns out, doing creative things can slow the effects of Alzheimer's, among other things. It won't stop it once it starts, but it will slow it down. The key is that while you can lose your memory, you can never lose your imagination.

The 109 year old was incredible. He composed for the beginning of his life, became very famous, then disappeared at the height of his career (circa like 1920). He got married, had kids, and moved out of the city. When he was in his 80s, he resurfaced and decided to start composing again. The great part is that most people in their 80s are basically done with life, but this guy still had so much music flowing out of his brain that he decided to start writing it again. He did so for another nearly 20 years! It's inspiring. The guy who still danced ballet was just as great.

All of the elderly people interviewed spoke about how young they felt. The only times they felt old were when their bodies were hurting. One lady said her knee was her only reminder of her age, and otherwise she felt just as young as she was in her 20s. When she paints, age or memory don't matter - it's all about the creativity and stretching the mind. New ideas always form.

Imagination is timeless.

I absolutely love to use my imagination, so that's what I'm about to do. Time to work on the story for Omnivore - it's been a while! I plan on using my imagination for the rest of my life, for the enjoyment of it, for the excitement of new ideas, and to stay young-at-mind.