In her book Home Education, Charlotte Mason wrote that children should have “tales of the imagination, scenes laid out in other lands and other times, heroic adventures, hairbreadth escapes, delicious fairy tales…” (pg 152) These types of stories and books inspire the imagination.
We usually think of imagination as being something used to write fairy tales or during playtime. But Charlotte wrote that it is not only for amusement, but that it is a prerequisite for the ability to do heroic things.
What child does not take their vorpal sword in hand and slay the Jabberwock, snicker-snack, along with the protagonist as they read or hear Lewis Carroll’s Jabberwocky? In my house that beast is slain anew each time the poem is read! Charlotte wrote that without the ability to forget your own problems and identify with someone else’s struggles, you would never be able to do anything heroic. Perhaps this exercise in imagination will allow my children to brave the unknown or to stand up and fight for something they believe in. They may never do these things, but, in any case, this poem certainly encourages imagination.
One of my favorite childhood imaginations comes from The Little Princess by Frances Hodgson Burnett. I read this book over and over when I was a child and could just see the horrible cold and ugly attic room turned into a lovely place filled with beautiful things. I imagined Sarah’s excitement when she sat down to the table full of delicious food and had her first real meal in months as well as her relief to sit and eat, warm and comfortable.
I don’t know if I am able to do heroic things because of the time I spent using my imagination as I read wonderful books as a child, but I do see in myself the ability to swim against the culture around me and follow my heart in many different areas of life. I hope to impart this same courage of conviction on to my children and that they will be able to live their lives as thinking persons rather than following the tide of our media-driven culture.
3 comments:
Yes, what you're doing is heroic. I'm grateful that God has given us the courage to swim against the tide. I didn't really have living books in my childhood, but somewhere I got the fortitude to do what's right. But I believe my children are gaining the courage of their convictions through living books and the way they're being discipled in our homeschool.
Great post!
Hello, I am stopping by from the CM Carnival. Your post is exactly what I desire to do for my children. I am legally blind and could not do a lot of reading when I was in school due to the lack of equipment to insist me. Now I have that equipment and have enjoyed catching up on everything I missed out on from reading great books. I don't want my children to miss out like I did.
That's so pretty! I can't wait to read this book with my girls, or maybe even before. I know it is wonderful.
Post a Comment