Lessons Learned…
Creativity Unwrapped 8
The
first day of summer vacation could irrefutably be the most eagerly anticipated
and longed for day on the calendar of all school children. In a word, freedom! My
own boys were faithfully counting the minutes, starting weeks before the late
winter snow had fully melted in the upper Midwest. On the eve of the day above
all days, much discussion was occurring in my home among the boys as to exactly
which television program might kick off the glorious three month hiatus. From
my couldn’t help but listen post at the kitchen counter, I knew we could do
better than this to usher in the summer, a beautiful season of different
learning. The woo hoo day arrived with
torrential rain but none-the-less great jubilating joy. The race to the
television was stopped in mid-step with the pronouncement that everyone needed
to hop in the car. What? Why? Garage sale-ing. Ughhhh. Everyone gets five
dollars to buy a broken appliance to take apart. It’s raining! All the better for
a day at the workbench. Garage sale
hosts are exceptionally enthusiastic to have customers during a rain storm, so
the deals were extremely good and it was clearly the peak season for broken
appliances. With three items and quite a
lot of pocket change in our possession, we headed dripping wet to the basement
workbench. Although the start was a bit slow with excitement in the project
noticeably underwhelming, the momentum quickly picked up and soon tools were
flying and the chatter of creativity was escalating in volume and speed. The
project lasted hours, days, and weeks, and grew to include the neighbor kids
who were already tired of watching television and much more interested in
engaging their hands and ideas in the project. Early on, it was determined that
all three appliances were completely unfixable, but by pooling all of the parts
and adding this and that from various nooks and crannies in the basement, the
garage, and the neighbors’ houses, a brand new idea emerged. The new idea led
to drawings, plans, suggestions (only when asked) from engineer dad, and many
phone calls (by the kids) to a variety of local gear shops. Fund raising
efforts were organized to have money to order and purchase parts to continue
work on the project. The project was brilliantly
and delightfully consuming and exhilarating and half of the summer whooshed by
in a flurry of creativity before a calendar was ever noticed. Camps, family
vacations, and assorted lessons punctuated the project efforts, but it all was good
and fun and happy. In what seemed to be a snap, we were buying school supplies
and shoes again readying for a new school year. Impossible. On the magnificent
wings of creativity, the summer flew in the most joyful way hovering over the
well-lit basement workbench, while the piece of furniture known as the
television collected a good amount of dust.
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