Asterisk Week 53: About Imagination
How can we use imagination to do the most good in the world?
Asterisk Project: International Creative Writing
Today’s prompt is a question: How can we use imagination to do the most good in the world? There’s no doubt that we’ve got some amazing imaginative people around here so I thought to ask about how do they use this side of them to help the world.
Have you ever considered using your creativity for the well-being of others?
Guilherme Aniceto
I imagine
and, for the sake of my sanity,
I tend to keep my feet on the ground.
Well, what is the point of imagining?
Imagine and accomplish it,
accomplish and regret it if you must.
regret and reimagine it.
Imagination is how we can picture a better view,
the awesome out of the awful.
Just imagine.
Giedrius
Even if imagination is a tool which helps us to decorate our and other people lives with groundbreaking ideas and things. The problem is that many times our ideas are used in the wrong way. Every time when you think you have a good idea how to change something in your or others lives, you could do just a big mistake.
Now imagine you created a new power source which is easy to manufacture and gives us a lot of battery life per capacity. What would it mean? You might think it would guarantee a better and safer environment because we would need fewer materials but like always there is a catch. To make batteries we would need to extract some stuff from rare animals for example rhinoceros horn. Should we make a species extinct just because of greed to get more power?
So how we could use our imagination to do good? We could write, we could paint but no inventions unless it‘s a medicine. I know that it could sound harsh for scientists but I just tell the truth. To be happy you don‘t need to have a flying car, you just want to be healthy and don‘t have problems.
Viviane Souza
Books. Books are a great weapon, and can be used for good.
With them, we can do great stuff, incredible things… Using the imagination to do the best.
Because the books are so important, and teach us how to act, they show us the best of people and they can be used in the best way possible.
Well… Art, in general, can be used for the best.
Alan Perez
It starts with a spark — usually made by striking a piece of sharp flint against a chunk of carbon steel. Under right conditions, this causes timber, usually a pile of old, dried up twigs, to heat up and combust, slowly starting a deep, powerful flame.
This process mirrors how imagination works — a spark of inspiration, adequate tools at your disposal and the right environment can begin the practical process of causing a change in the world. Every advance that humanity has done has begun with imagination, with people using their creativity and ingenuity to create or build upon something that already exists.
So, the question is, how can we use our imagination to do the most good in the world? I think it is by making use of it, not just letting it sit in our brains. Whatever skill you have, be it technical or artistic, you should use the sparks of inspiration in your mind to set a real world (metaphorical) fire.
I dedicated almost my entire professional life to trying to do leave the world a little bit better than how I found it. I spent the past 10 years or so all over the island of Hispaniola, working in several non profit organizations that worked in advocacy and community organizing for marginalized communities, such as the impoverished, sex workers, HIV positive people, LGBTQ people, undocumented migrants, etc. I’d estimate that 60% of my job was trying to think up creative solutions to practical problems — using the privileges I had been granted and the technical skills I had built up to try and make a positive impact in the world. Many of the projects I worked on are physical proof of the power that imagination can have in communities.
But on a personal level, more than anything, I’ve used my imagination to as means to connect with people. I am actually a very shy person, and more than a little bit awkward — I barely speak in person and I tend to not make eye contact with people. It’s made my social life quite difficult, to say the least. But I find that I’ve been best able to communicate with people through art — be in the process of making it, or just appreciating and talking about the work of others. I can talk for hours about my favorite books, movies or music. It allowed me to have meaningful connections with people I may have otherwise never been able to speak to. To communicate the fears, aspirations and experiences I have had but was too scared to share. That is the power of art — I believe that meaningful communication allows us to better understand one another, and that discourages conflict and hatred.
In summary, I believe imagination and creativity both advances our world through technology, and social progress, but also allows for social cooperation and exchange.
Ana Azevedo
As I began this group back in 2017 I wasn’t sure what I really wanted to do with it. The only thing I knew was that I need a creative outlet for the day-to-day life. After finishing college and (trying) getting into the work world, life seemed a little boring. Writing has being in my life since I can remember and now, for the first time I felt like I had enough courage to project it outside and gather people to join me.
During the past years, a lot has happened. For the first time I’ve felt completely powerless towards life. For the first time I’ve felt totally unsecure about my country.
For the first time: I think I ran away. How can we use imagination to do the most good in the world?
I’m still not sure if our actions can impact the world as we want. As it turns out, everything falls down to money and power, although I can’t help but notice how my little action of imagination ( to imagine we could take up 10 minutes to imagine and write every week with people from everywhere) led me to be a better person all together.
Turns out it became not only a moment for creative outlet but also a moment for emotional outlet. Healing. Therapeutic writing.
And if it was good for me and at some point it was good to somebody else I might not even know then…that’s good. It doesn’t have to be great, or life changing. But it did good somewhere in the world.
Which is better than to have done nothing.
So I’ll write more this year, still in fear of what the future might be. But at least with people by my side, seeing and doing some good in the middle of the chaos.
Thank you.
How can we use imagination to do the most good in the world? I heard this question in an episode of the podcast Harry Potter and The Sagred Text a couple of weeks before. It was very interesting to hear the answers of our members and to realize we’re all in the same boat. Life’s hard but art helps. I’m glad we’re able to help ouselves.
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