Imagination – Breakaway Consciousness

#Quote Of The Day | #Imagination | #Creativity | #JulesVerne

“Anything one man can imagine, other men can make real.”
– Jules Verne

#Quote Of The Day | #Curiosity | #Imagination

“Curiosity is the one thing invincible in Nature.”
– Freya Stark

A Storm Of Imagination On The Moon | #ShortStory | #Writing | #Imagination | #Creativity

BreakawayIndividual.com
Zy Marquiez
April 19, 2019

Arriving on the moon employing a lightning strike that would reverberate for hundreds of miles, I meander along the grey and vapid dust covered terrain to see how my friend is doing.

Noticing her asleep with her face buried in an artbook, I say, “Hey, you alright?”

No reply. I tap her on the shoulder about to whisper, ‘Are you okay?’ when she jumps perplexed and wide-eyed.

“Hey,” I say.
Groggy, she says, “Hey…sorry…”
“No apologies.” Nodding to the drawing book that’s on her desk I say, “So what are you working on?”
Flash-fast, she snaps it shut saying, “Nothing.”
“Uh huh,” I reply. “Just like all those books you have over there,” as I motion to the books, “And that crate of notes you have behind you.”
“That’s none of your business,” she replied immediately.
“Re-lax, it’s all good, I was just curious, meant no harm by it, really. So you come to the moon to get work done too, huh?”
Rubbing her eyes with the base of her palms while waking herself up, she replies, “Yeah, I like this place. It’s peaceful.”
“And barren.”
“Don’t remind me.”
“Here,” I state while handing her a cup of scalding coffee. “Here’s some – “
She snatches it from my hand and drinks the boiling cup of coffee in record time as my mouth just opens slowly, wondering why she didn’t feel anything.
“We’re on the Moon, remember? Or did you forget?”
“Yeah, yeah, just never saw anyone drink a cup of scalding-hot coffee that quick.”
“Well we’re not on Earth, you know,” she states matter-of-factly.
“Touché. You know, you missed it,” I said switching the topic.
“Missed what.”
“I came here in my best Zeus impersonation, arriving with a lightning strike and everything. You should have heard the thunder.”
“You forgot the puff of smoke,” she couldn’t resist saying.
“Nah, that’s too over-the-top. I like to keep it low key, you know.”
Suppressing a small laugh, she shakes her head saying, “You’re something else.”

My reply was a slow shrug with palms facing upwards. Thence, noticing some of the decorations in her newly-decorated private cozy alcove, I can’t help but comment.

“You’ve made it home-y here.”
“Can’t put a price on comfort, you know.”
“You’re right about that,” I said.
“I heard explosions over on the other side of the Moon early this morning.”
“Oh…yeah…about that…”
“What?” she replied curiously.
“That’s probably Yoda training younglings in the ways of the force using the mind to defuse explosive devices and all that jazz.”
“Yoda’s on the Moon?” she said perplexed.
“Everyone’s on the Moon. He likes to hang out with Socrates you know – a meeting of The Minds of there ever were one. They live in a cave on the other side by this enormous crater.”
“You know Socrates too?”
“Uh, no, but he knows me very well. He knows everybody better than they know themselves. Just wait ‘till you meet him.”
“Sounds fun,” she replied eager.
“It’ll be a thrill, I promise,” was my sarcastic and yet honest reply.
“You don’t sound too, uh, reassuring you know…”
“Oh, no, it’ll be lots of fun. And lots of everything else too. You’ll understand when it happens.”

Sinking into her mind and placing her forearms on this cozy rocking chair she had, she rocked slowly for a couple of minutes in deep thought.

Not able to resist the urgh, I ask, “So, about that -”
“Don’t ask.”
“Why can’t I know what you are drawing?”
“Because it’s none of your business,” was her reply with enough emphasis to build a bridge to walk on.
“You mean this?” I said as I magically had the drawing book in my hand, pulled out of thin air with a flash of the mind.
Looking back at her desk, then at me, then at her desk panicking, she snapped off, “Don’t!”
“Don’t what?”
“Don’t you dare open that – “ she started to say when she began being held by her arms by two SWAT team members while duct-tape covered her mouth.

“Time-Out,” I said in my best Zack Morris impersonation wherein everything froze, with her eyes bug-eyed wide.

Snapping both fingers, a classroom of young kids manifests with dozens among the students.
Continuing in my best professor-like fashion, I state, “What we have here class, is a failure of imagination,” I say as my arms gesture a sweep to my friend.

There was a slight earquake felt throughout, making all the kids nervous.

“Worry not, it’s just Yoda on the other side of the crater training younglings,” was my attempt at calming the kids nerves, knowing better.

My friend’s reply to this was slowly narrowing her eyes, fighting my use of imagination with hers, slowly, but very powerfully.

Continuing on, I add, “What’s the #1 Rule Of Imagination?”
“Anything’s possible!” says one of the student’s in an overly enthusiastic and yet annoying manner.
“What’s Rule #2 of Imagination?”
“”Hell is empty and all the devils are here.””
“Wait, what? Why are you quoting Shakespeare? That’s not Rule #2.” was my reply, as I quickly turned to him in curiosity of his response, shifting from having my eye on my friend for a second as our minds battled for control of the current circumstances.
“Look at her eyes, THEY ARE BRIGHT RED!”

Turning to her and instantly panicking, I put my palms up in resignation, saying “Wait, wait, wait, wai-“ when it happens.

She unleashes a death-ray my way just like Cyclops from X-Men, that I dodge by a hair’s breadth, which scorches the landscape for hundreds of miles, as she sweeps her eyes chasing me as a target while she simultaneously turned both SWAT team members into pillars of flaming dust that whispered away into the environs.

After stopping, seemingly exhausted for a second, I interrupted her quickly saying, “Look! I was kidding, I wasn’t about to look at your drawing book, it was an act in jest you know. Think about it, if I wanted to look at it, I would have merely manifested the drawing book out of thin air fully open, no?”
“Oh…yeah….I guess you’re right,” she said in contemplation, while rubbing her temples mentally exhausted from what she just did.
“I know it was hard to tell at the time, but I was going to give it back.”
“Guess I got a little carried away…”
“A little?” I reply with an overly-excited gesture pointing at the horizon that had been pierced by her laser-eyes moments ago. “You just remodeled the Moon” I said with incredible emphasis. “It usually requires asteroids to do that, you know? I’ll admit, that was a sight to see.”
Replying with a small smile, she asks, “Really?”
“Hell yes! Woman, you just sliced off a chunk of the moon, LIKE IT WAS A SLICE OF CHEESE,” was my reply with a loud laugh. “With. Your. Eyes!” I said pointing at her artistic work again to prove my point. “How many people do you know that have done that?”
“Nobody,” was her reply with a shy smile. Continuing on, she states matter-of-factly, “That was cool. Sort of.”
“Understatement of the millennia. Though I don’t know if cool is the word that I would use to describe it. I’da probably said ‘That was hot’,” was my reply in jest.
Laughing, “Okay, yeah.”
Looking at the watch on my wrist, I say “You know, it’s getting late. I better bolt.”
“Like lightning?” she eagerly replied joking, proud of herself.
Laughing out loud, I reply, “Okay, smooth operator, that was good. But yeah, it’s that time.”

Summoning another one of Zeus’ signature lightning strikes, this time an order of magnitude more powerful, the thunderbolt pierces the ground in a echoing equally in all directions as I vanished out of sight.

Him and his damn lightning bolts was her first thought as she shook her head.

Pensive for a minute, she stood there taking in the sight of the barren and aridly cold landscape. Thence she looked left, then looked right, making sure that nobody was watching. While smiling in sinister fashion, storm clouds begin manifesting within the atmosphere slowly circling ahead brought about by her mind, increasing speed with every second. In apocalyptic-like fashion, she unleashes hundreds of lighting strikes across the landscape, with the most powerful lightning strike being a bright purple one that she unleashed as her thundering departure, literally bolting out of existence.

Dozens of miles away, Yoda says, “One lightning strike, that was not,” as he mentally absorbed what took place while taking one of his signature deep breaths. “A spectacle, yes, yes it was.”
“A spectacle of what?” replied Socrates intrigued.
“A spectacle of imagination,” was Yoda’s reply, as he smiled in his ever-knowing way.

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Author Notes:

[1] My quoting Shakespeare about ‘Devils’ and so on isn’t a shot at anyone, but finding an intriguing quote to add a little depth to the story. It’s not meant in any negative way; the quote and the scene are merely my point to convey that while the character might look like a devil, it was obvious she was not. To the children she seemed like a devil because they saw her fearfully, but to me she was someone with superpowers. I hope that makes sense. Moreover, the story is to show off the power in imagination that individuals don’t know they have within themselves. That’s the main point of the whole story.

[2] I wrote this 3 day ago, right after the other short story on the moon. I waited because I wanted to share it with the person whom I believe inspired this post, but seeing as the internet is one confusing cluster-@#ck of unknowns, I just decided to share it here and just be thankful of whomever was in fact the person that inspired it since I really have no idea at this point.

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Suggested Reading:

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If you find value in this information, feel free to share it. This article is free and open source. All individuals have permission to republish this article under a Creative Commons license with attribution to Zy Marquiez and BreakawayIndividual.com

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About The Author:

Zy Marquiez is an avid book reviewer, inquirer, an open-minded skeptic, yogi, and freelance writer who aims at empowering individuals while also studying and regularly mirroring subjects like Consciousness, Education, Creativity, The Individual, Ancient History & Ancient Civilizations, Forbidden Archaeology, Big Pharma, Alternative Health, Space, Geoengineering, Social Engineering, Propaganda, and much more.

#Book Review: Summerhill School – A New View Of Childhood by A.S. Neil | #SmartReads | #Education

BreakawayIndividual.com
Zy Marquiez
April 19, 2019

Having read three books by the late John Taylor Gatto, who has spoken out at length about the inherent issues within public schooling, while also having met some people through discussing these books, someone was kind enough to recommend this particular book. To say the least, this book is outside of the box as outside of the box can be when it comes to education.

Summerhill School – A New View Of Childhood by A.S. Neil is a book that details the venture of those who took part in the school known as Summerhill, which sought to achieve a new standard of learning and growth.

A.S. Neil was the person mainly responsible for this audacious undertaking, and his actions echo still to this day.

What Neil sought to do was create a place where the idea/value of Freedom is wholly respected, through and through. For this, this new school required a different way of thinking – a whole new mindset. This venture required the removal of preconceived notions of childhood schooling, coupled with the open-mindedness that to achieve true education in the school system the child must govern entirely free to govern themselves. This means that the child would be active in most of what the child chooses for their own development, which may include various aspects learning or playing. A true unorthodox point of view if there ever were one.

Neil’s democratic style education based around the individual is quite evocative, because when carried out correctly [as myriad examples show in his book] it shows that children can self-govern themselves, and also do so quite well. This takes place also with little to no interference from the adults, except in some very unique circumstances. For the most part though, children were left to their own devices, to choose what type of learning they would undertake.

To gauge what Neil strove to achieve, let’s take a gander at his own words:

“The goal was to use childhood and adolescence to create emotional wholeness and personal strength. Neil thought that once this wholeness had been achieved children would be self-motivated to learn what they needed academically. The key to this growth was to give children freedom to play for as long as they felt the need in an atmosphere of approval and love. The children were given freedom but not license; they could do as they pleased as long as it didn’t bother anyone else.”[1][Bold Emphasis Added]

Therein lies the beauty, for the child who ends up not playing, ends up not using one of the most important parts of life for learning and growth – imagination. Furthermore, the children that have unfinished childhoods so to speak, later in life seek to do things that could have already taken place, and which end up slowing down the progress of growth as an adult. That’s what Neil noticed in his work.

Couple to the above the fact that in the notable magazine, Scientific American, in an article titled “The Serious Need For Play”, it was reported by Melinda Wenner Moyer that one-third of the kids who had gone to play-free schools had been arrested for felonies.[2]

Additionally, there are other topics discussed within the book. Everything from social structure, emotional problems, particularly with children who are a bit older, meetings, self-government, what are called ‘problem children’, play and self-regulation and much more is discussed at length.

Perhaps, the best way to understand what Summerhill is truly about comes from the following:

“You don’t have Summerhill in order that children should study or learn to become “ists” of any kind. You let them function in their own play-work fashion, and you postulate no purpose for them at all.”[3]

The genius of the idea is that because their core individual foundation in childhood was so enjoyable and emotionally robust children end up learning vastly quicker when they choose to follow their path than students enter the public school system.

However, if that growth is not allowed when children are forced through compulsory schooling, that then crushes their individuality and imagination. Those very circumstances turn children into robots, only capable of following orders and never taught to critically think. Only memorization of facts becomes important, and not arriving at the facts through a strong critical-thinking process within their mental faculties.

For that reason, many of the topics of the book do delve into the idea of playing. Neil does make it a point about focusing on the benefits of playing quite a bit. What the notion of play entails is:

“…not thinking in terms of athletic fields and organized games; I am thinking of play in terms of fantasy. Organized games involve skill, competition, teamwork; but children’s play usually requires no skill, little competition, and hardly any teamwork.”[4][Bold Emphasis Added]

In other words, true play, like a whetstone, hones the development of imagination. And imagination is integral, because a child whose imagination hasn’t developed has had his childhood stultified, as well as their imagination, and will be a conformist child, and thus, a conformist adult at the drop of a hat. Disturbingly, this is exactly what we see in society more and more with time.

The book is split up into two parts. First, the book covers all facets regarding Summerhill, which are covered at length from a variety of angles, citing dozens and dozens of examples of how children responded to particular scenarios and whatnot. Everything from classes, theater, music, sex, teachers, and much more is discussed here. The second part of the book covers many aspects of Neils life, as he takes us through the journey of what brought him to taking part in Summerhill.

All this considered, the book is a fantastic read. Admittedly, the first half appealed to me a lot more than the second part, but that’s because the interest for me was in the process for the individual and not so much in how the author came to be part of it. Regardless, the book really is something worth pondering for anybody that thinks the one-size-fits-all public schooling and compulsory conformity system that western schooling has become is good, really needs to take a look at the conformity crisis that’s taking place. That, however, is a whole different can of worms. One that John Taylor Gatto discusses at length in all of his books.

If you have read any of John Taylor Gatto’s book, then you will know how indoctrination and conformity are the aim of public schooling, and there’s many public documents showing this. Because of that, and more, an honest view into a different paradigm such as this one brought about by Neil is needed. Summerhill has shown that education and personal growth can actually be enjoyable for once.

Summerhill has already broken new ground for a new paradigm. Now it’s up to individuals to ruminate upon how to learn from it and see where it may take them.

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Footnotes:

[1] A.S. Neil, Summerhill School – A New View Of Childhood, p. xviii
[2] Moyer, Melinda Wenner, “The Serious Need For Play.” Scientific American, 2013: 86. Print.
[3] A.S. Neil, Summerhill School – A New View Of Childhood, p. 217.
[4] Ibid., p. 32.

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Suggested Reading & Watching:

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Suggested Reading & Watching:

What Is The Difference Between Education & Public Schooling?
Logical Fallacies Employed In Every Day Life
Dumbing Us Down by John Taylor Gatto
Weapons Of Mass Instruction by John Taylor Gatto
13 Great Reasons To Study Logic
How A Generation Lost Its Culture – by Professor Patrick Deneen
A Different Kind Of Teacher by John Taylor Gatto
Socratic Logic by Peter Kreeft Ph.D.
Philosophy 101 by Peter Kreeft Ph.D.
Brave New World & Brave New World Revisited by Aldous Huxley
What Is Education? The Elite Curriculum – John Taylor Gatto
Breakaway Guide To Censorship, Disinformation, Logical Fallacies & More
How To Read A Book by Mortimer J. Adler and Charles Van Doren
Classrooms Of The Heart [Documentary] – John Taylor Gatto
Sumerhill School – A New View On Childhood by A.S. Neil
Social Engineering 101
The True Purpose Of Modern Schooling
Getting Things Done by David Allen
Open-Source Method: Genius Education – Examples | John Taylor Gatto
The Trivium – The Liberal Arts Of Logic, Grammar & Rhetoric by Sister Miriam Joseph Ph.D.
Cultural Literacy – What Every American Needs To Know by E.D. Hirsch Jr.
A Rulebook For Arguments by Anthony Weston
A Workbook For Arguments by David R. Morrow & Anthony Wesson
Drilling Through The Core – Why Common Core Is Bad For American Education by Sandra Stotsky & Contributors

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About The Author:

#Quote Of The Day | #Wonder | #Imagination | #Motivation | #Inspiration

“Wonder is the beginning of wisdom.”
– Socrates

#Quote Of The Day – #Creativity | #Imagination

“You can’t use up creativity. The more you use, the more you have.”
– Maya Angelou

Never Underestimate The Power Of Imagination, The Power Of Dropping Seeds | #Imagination | #Inspiration | #Motivation | #Positivity | #PositiveVibes

“Imagination is everything. It is the preview to life’s coming attractions.”
– Albert Einstein

“You have all the reason in the world to achieve your grandest dreams. Imagination plus innovation equals realization.”
– Denis Waitley

BreakawayIndividual.com
Zy Marquiez
April 16, 2019

Imagination is the gateway to everything that is created.

An individual merely must step through that doorway and begin imagining possibilities, solutions, change; positive change every single individual is capable of displacing.

For instance, just yesterday, someone left a metaphorical seed at my doorstep. I call the act a ‘seed’ because a seed always holds endless potential. And just as seeds need water and the right environment to grow and fluoresce, individuals need the right inspiration and the right circumstances to act on imagination.

The seed this person left was promptly used by me and fertilized as such, and voila, I there in chose to act. This was because (1) the right inspiration came around, and (2) the right circumstance was coupled to that. If both hadn’t taken place, my decision to create something wouldn’t have happened.

Why does an individual need both inspiration and circumstance to take place? Because people get inspired all the time, but many times individuals do not act on that inspiration, they merely ruminate upon it at length under endless “what-if’s”. I used to be incredibly guilty of this. On the other hand, many people create things quite often, but when they aren’t feeling inspired they are not at the top of their proverbial game, which is why inspiration is so crucial – it acts as fuel for those seeds of imagination. This could be emblematic of writer’s block – the ability to create something, but not much that ends up being useful.

The fusion of both above concepts is the perfect merger of gasoline and match; the gasoline is the seed in endless potential, and the match is the individual acting within the right circumstance to unleash the endless tsunamis of their bondless potential. This means everything.

As an individual, at any moment, at any time, you can inspire yourself to create something wondrous – be it writing, painting, creating music and the like. But it doesn’t stop there, because your very ability to act on your inspiration and imagination pushes others to test the boundaries of their imagination, wherever they may lead.

All of this is incredible potential that is inherent within every single individual and has an extremely resounding effect that doesn’t get the credit that it deserves.

How many seeds will you drop today?

What forms of seeds will you share?

What type of creations will those encourage?

It’s an interesting proposition to consider, isn’t it?

Every moment is the right moment, just keep dropping those seeds.

For when the right time comes someone will not only appreciate that gesture of kindness, but they will contribute to the cycle of creation that is woven within the very strands of life.

Dropping seeds to help creation itself, to help life move forward?

What a neat concept.

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Suggested Reading:

Have You Ever Walked On The Moon?
Stranger On The Moon
Wings Are Made To Fly, Seeds Are Made To Grow
Why A Sound Mindset Is Crucial: The Light Side Of Mindset Vs. The Dark Side Of Mindset
Mindset Mindset Mindset!
A Sound Mindset Amidst The Obstacles Of Life
Mindwaves & Mindfulness
Modern Misteps Meet Mindfulness
How TV Robs You Of Your Life
How You Deposit A Truckload Of Black Pearls Into An Emotional Bank Account
How Are Your (Emotional) Bank Accounts Doing?
Emotional Bank Accounts: Mutual Funds
Emotional Bank Accounts: Deposits & Withdraws
Emotional Bank Accounts: Gems Gems Gems, Babies Everywhere!
Emotional Bank Accounts: I Call Your 7 Cents & Raise You A Dollar
Poker & Life: Pulling The Friend’s Card
Imagination Unleashed
The Inherent Power Of Curiosity
A 7 Cent Investment Into An Emotional Bank Account To Convert A Hater?
What Do You Find Inspiring?
Poker FlashBack: Swimming With Sharks, Swimming With Whales
Imagination Rises Out Of The Jaws Of Defeat
What’s Your Story?
You The Individual Are Author Of Your Own Journey, Of Your Own Destiny
Harry Potter Fans Trash Talk? Say WHAT?!
Consciously Creating The Road Of Change, The World Of Tomorrow
What Are Your Personal Defaults?
The Opening Salvo, The First Minute
The Seeds Of Today, The World Of Tomorrow
Assumptions Are Mother Of All F@!$ Ups
Piercing Perspectives #1: Taking Things For Granted | Health & Mindset
Piercing Perspectives #2: You The Individual Are Extraordinary
Piercing Perspectives #3: The Divide & Conquer Left Right Paradigm
Piercing Perspectives #4: Poker As A Mirror For Life
The Individual, The Foundation Of Society

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About The Author: