random thoughts

All begins with an idea: all theories, inventions, musings, writings, songs, paintings, poems, plays, and games. All begin with an idea, a spark that ignites the fire of human intellect, that launches men into the pursuit of some product or truth. Any man can memorize facts and crunch numbers. Any man can follow a plan. These things can be taught. But coming up with a plan is far more difficult. Can you teach that? Can you teach a man to dream?

People need fiction. They need fairy tales. We need to know that there are monsters in this world and that they can be defeated. We need to know that love is more powerful and more worthwhile than anything else in the world. We need to know that there is good in every man, and that good will eventually triumph over evil. We need to know that there some things with no price tag, and some things are worth dying for.

Modern life has become a quest for comfort and economic gain, an attempt to just survive. They tell you that life is boring, empty, and all that matters is what’s in your pocket. People don’t walk around saying, “Hello. My name name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die.” They don’t sacrifice everything for love. They are afraid to dream. They are afraid to try.

Fairy tales help us believe that these things exist, even if they only dwell in our imaginations. It is a spark hot enough to light a fire that keeps us alive. It keeps us alive and reminds us not to let our lives be mundane, boring and wasted. It reminds us that life is wild and precious and ultimately worth living

So I'm going to keep reading Tolkien and Lewis and Brooks and Lawhead, even if people tell me they're childish and that intelligent people read Hemmingway and Fitzgerald and Kafka. I'll write my silly stories no one else will read. Maybe it's stupid. Maybe it's childish. But I'm holding on to these childish ideas. I'll believe that good will conquer evil. I'll believe true love is out there. I'll believe in God. I'll believe in a world worth fighting for.