creativity – Journey to Imagination

Tag: creativity

Writer, Blogger, & Educator Elizabeth Daghfal—Nothing Beats a Great Story, Part 2

Posted on June 22, 2020June 30, 2020 by Laura

Give Elizabeth Daghfal an idea, and she’ll run with it. But get out of the way so you don’t get blown over in the wake. It only takes a suggestion---an image, a song, a place---for the idea to grow into a full-blown play script, a musical production, an article, or...Read More

Writer, Blogger, & Educator Elizabeth Daghfal—Nothing Beats a Great Story

Posted on June 15, 2020June 15, 2020 by Laura

My friend and fellow writer Elizabeth Daghfal and her seventeen-year-old daughter Lydia participated in a three-day 60-mile walk to fight breast cancer. Throughout the miles, Elizabeth pointed at various sights and said, “That could make a great storyline for a mystery novel,” or “That’s a great idea for a children’s...Read More

Necessity is the Mother of Invention, and We Need Sanity!

Posted on March 31, 2020April 1, 2020 by Laura

Welcome back to my blog! If you’re a newcomer, I’m so glad you’ve joined me on this creative journey. I can imagine many things, but I never imagined that by the time I resumed blogging, the whole world would be on lockdown. Never would I have imagined a toilet paper...Read More

How is your Muse doing?

Posted on October 30, 2019October 28, 2019 by Laura

Sometimes my Muse won’t let me sleep, no matter how late. In bed, at various hours of the night, I have to turn on the light and jot down my ideas so the Muse will leave me alone. When I wake up, the Muse is sitting on my shoulder. Really?...Read More

Looking back on Muses & Memories

Posted on October 23, 2019October 24, 2019 by Laura

Have you ever noticed that when you go on a vacation and people ask you how it was, they really only want to know that you had a good time? Their eyes glaze over if you talk incessantly or show them too many pictures. They don’t really care to hear...Read More

Mark Cage & ACAP—Fulfilling a Quest of a Different Kind

Posted on October 8, 2019October 10, 2019 by Laura

On Main Street in March (2019), the theater marquee announced The Wizard of Oz Unplugged by the ACAP Playmakers. Unplugged? Some bizarre techno-version of Oz? I was intrigued. That weekend I attended the show. In a packed auditorium, I sat next to a dad whose adult son had been thriving...Read More

Educator Mollie Gruennert: Creating School Environment with Joy, Beauty, and Shalom– Part 1

Posted on February 25, 2019February 25, 2019 by Laura

Mollie Gruennert is passionate. She has always desired to make a difference, exemplifying this outlook: "I alone cannot change the world, but I can cast a stone across the waters to create many ripples." ― Mother Teresa This desire has taken many routes, primarily in education. She received a B.S. in Education...Read More

People Watching #5

Posted on January 21, 2019November 20, 2018 by Laura

Welcome back to my blog! Time to resume our Journey To Imagination after taking a break. I hope the past few weeks offered plenty of highlights, holiday fun, and creative outlets. Have you done any people watching lately? The first time we looked at Edward Hopper’s Nighthawks. Then we examined...Read More

Engineer Dan Dotson: Creating innovative Solutions

Posted on November 5, 2018October 26, 2018 by Laura

Engineer Dan Dotson once did a high school book report on Thomas Edison. “He might have inspired me more than I know,” Dan says. "Genius is one percent inspiration, ninety-nine percent perspiration." --Thomas Edison Edison knew all about that. He barreled through obstacles and never gave up. Regarding his work...Read More

We’re off to See the Wizard, Part 4: The Man Behind the Curtain, continued

Posted on October 22, 2018February 20, 2019 by Laura

Do you recall the resume in my last post? We left off with L. Frank Baum leaving Aberdeen--broke, disappointed, and disillusioned---with a wife and four kids to feed. Chicago---The Lean Years and New Beginnings (1890s) The Baums arrived in Chicago in time for the 1893 Columbian Exposition, a time of...Read More

We’re off to See the Wizard, Part 1: The Wizard of Chittenango & the Magic of Oz

Posted on October 1, 2018October 1, 2018 by Laura

Recognize any of these phrases? • “Some people without brains do any awful lot of talking.” • “I’ve a feeling we’re not in Kansas anymore.” • “I’ll get you, my pretty, and your little dog, too!” • “Follow the Yellow Brick Road.” • “Lions and tigers and bears, oh my!” •...Read More

Monday Metaphor Musings #4: Life

Posted on September 24, 2018January 28, 2019 by Laura

"Life is like a doughnut. It can be sweet and tasty, but there’s always a hole in the middle.” That’s just one of many ways people have tried to capture the essence of human life on planet Earth, with all its many facets. The challenges of life have been compared...Read More

People Watching #4

Posted on September 17, 2018September 13, 2018 by Laura

Have you done any people watching lately? The first time we looked at Edward Hopper’s Nighthawks. Then we examined a 1930s Charles Walton photograph. After that, we speculated about the dynamics of two girls and a guy at the dinner table. I loved reading your comments---the ideas evoked by those...Read More

Elmer Sparks, Part 2: Spreading Happiness through Bluegrass Music

Posted on August 30, 2018August 28, 2018 by Laura

Tuesday nights at the Muckwanago Library must be the happiest in all of Wisconsin. It’s the night of the monthly Bluegrass Jam. Even before I stepped foot in the room (April 9, 2018), the twangs, strums, and picking of banjos, guitars, and string bass wafted out to the corridor, compelling...Read More

Elmer Sparks, Part 1: Spreading Happiness through Photography

Posted on August 27, 2018August 23, 2018 by Laura

Only one photographer ever got my husband to smile for a portrait. Just one. And a genuine smile, not a fake smile-through-your-teeth “can we get this over with?” kind of smile. That man is Elmer Sparks. That was the year he took portraits of every family in our church for...Read More

Master Gardeners: Beautifying the World, One Yard at a Time, Part 2

Posted on August 16, 2018August 19, 2018 by Laura

For years, every time I called my dad, he’d say, “Dave and I weeded this . . .” and “Dave and I built that . . .” and “Dave and I transplanted this . . .” Who is this Dave? I wondered. My siblings and I only knew him by...Read More

Master Gardeners: Beautifying the World, One Yard at a Time, Part 1

Posted on August 13, 2018July 24, 2018 by Laura

Last time I shared my own gardening tip: live next door to neighbors with gorgeous landscaping. Today you’ll meet one of the reasons for this tip. Over the years, my dad, Don DeNooyer, raised the landscaping bar so high, it’s beyond my reach. Though I don’t live next door to...Read More

Get out that Club

Posted on August 6, 2018June 21, 2018 by Laura

A pastor once said that when he’s stuck on writing his sermon, he cleans out his garage. Yup, that’s it. That’s the cure for his writer’s block. I can totally relate! When I’m stuck on what to do next in my own writing, I start organizing piles, files, and boxes....Read More

Accidental Art & Inventions: Popsicles, Post-it Notes, & Parisian filmmaking

Posted on July 26, 2018June 21, 2018 by Laura

What happens when cooked wheat sits too long? Or when the movie camera jams? When you run out of ice cream cups or baker’s chocolate for your recipe? When your science experiment turns out the opposite of what you expected? Or when your cleaning product becomes obsolete? Sometimes these mistakes...Read More

Artist Marie Scott: Mixing Business with Pleasure

Posted on July 12, 2018July 12, 2018 by Laura

Mixing art and business is just as tricky as mixing colors to get precisely the right hue. And it takes just as much skill as applying paint to the canvas in a pleasing manner. For those of us who create and want to share our creations with the world, there...Read More

The starving artist is not so hungry

Posted on June 28, 2018June 26, 2018 by Laura

[caption id="attachment_752" align="alignleft" width="231"] Via picksnoz on Visual Hunt[/caption] How long could you live in a sterile environment devoid of color, surrounded by stark whites or drab grays? What if your only food was rice, cream of wheat, fish, oatmeal, or bananas (without the peel)? Could any of us survive...Read More

People Watching, #2

Posted on June 25, 2018June 18, 2018 by Laura

Have you done any people watching lately? Last time we looked at Edward Hopper’s Nighthawks. [caption id="attachment_745" align="aligncenter" width="456"] Via State Library of New South Wales[/caption] Aside from knowing that a picture is worth 1000 words, a picture evokes 1000 stories. If I showed a picture to a dozen students...Read More

Should kids get trophies for participation?

Posted on June 21, 2018June 12, 2018 by Laura

When my kids were in elementary school, they received little trophies each year just for running in the jog-a-thon fund-raiser. Speed or agility didn’t matter. The number of sponsors and the amount you raised didn’t matter. You could get a trophy just for the fact that you showed up and...Read More

Are you Celebrating or Lamenting?

Posted on June 18, 2018July 26, 2021 by Laura

Did you ever read a book and wish you’d written it? Have you walked through a gallery and wished you had a better eye and camera for your own photography exploits? Have you found yourself envying the singer with the beautiful voice or the musician with such mastery of his...Read More

Revision: When is it good enough? Finished or abandoned?

Posted on June 14, 2018May 22, 2019 by Laura

How do you know when you’re done revising a poem, essay, or novel? Leonardo Da Vinci said, “Art is never finished, only abandoned.” He obviously wasn’t completely satisfied with the final product. French poet Paul Valery concurred by saying, “A poem is never finished, only abandoned.” Such is the case...Read More

Barbara Britton: Perfume Pics, Coloring Pencils, and Records: An Author’s Unconventional Tool Box

Posted on June 11, 2018April 23, 2018 by Laura

Have you wondered what it would be like living in Biblical Old Testament times? So has author Barbara Britton. In fact, she digs into O.T. history to create story worlds from 1000s of years ago. Her wanderings start with map-making and music. Last year I read the first book from...Read More

The Compulsion to Tell A Story: The Dog Ate My Glasses

Posted on June 7, 2018April 23, 2018 by Laura

My husband Tim tells the story of when he was in 4th grade playing baseball with the neighbors. He had brand new glasses and was afraid of breaking them. He set them in a “safe place” in the grass nearby. A dog was snooping around. After he got up to...Read More

Interior Designer Kaysie Strickland: Home as a Haven of Healing, Part 2

Posted on May 24, 2018May 24, 2018 by Laura

How has your home or your art been a healing place for you? Kaysie Strickland, founder and president of Homes & Havens, is an interior designer who has mastered the art of creating healing home environments for wounded women. Last time, she shared her philosophy of home as a healing...Read More

Interior Designer Kaysie Strickland: Home as a Haven of Healing, Part 1

Posted on May 21, 2018April 23, 2018 by Laura

Have you ever thought about the most healing features of your home? What in your environment brings you comfort and peace and reminds you to focus on the right things? These are questions that interior designer Kaysie Strickland might ask if you hired her. My daughter Kaia introduced me to...Read More

My Pitiful Venture into Interior Design

Posted on May 17, 2018April 23, 2018 by Laura

I call my decorating style eclectic. That’s mainly because I can never decide which route to take. My daughters, who have very good taste, probably laugh at me behind my back. Not in a mean way. Just something like, “Mom and her crazy decorating ideas. It just never goes well...Read More

Monday Metaphor Musings #1: Web

Posted on May 14, 2018May 14, 2018 by Laura

What comes to mind when you think of the word web? I teach writing students how to brainstorm ideas on paper, using a webbing technique that some call clustering. Many teachers use this. The rules are simple: start with a word, phrase, or concept in the middle of the page,...Read More

Artist Laura Fesser, Part 1: Inspired by Polymer, Playable Guitars, & Portraits

Posted on May 7, 2018July 12, 2018 by Laura

Laura Fesser wears two creative hats: artist and teacher. Her lively artwork brightens our community at the local hospital, library, and gallery, as well as numerous homes. Laura teaches elementary art at Heritage Christian School where I started the secondary art program years earlier. Later, she taught my four children,...Read More

Ode to Broken Crayons: Some do’s and don’ts

Posted on April 30, 2018April 25, 2018 by Laura

We’ve all been there with a huge sigh, staring at a pile of old crayons. Ready to throw them out. Or staring in disbelief as our child peels the paper right off brand new crayons! How dare he! And if he snaps a crayon in half, oh my! Call in...Read More

Let it Go to Let it Grow

Posted on April 26, 2018April 28, 2018 by Laura

“What a great job you’re doing on that tower!” I said to my three-year-old son, my enthusiasm rivaling a rock concert crowd. CRASH! In an instant, he sent blocks flying across the room. Not for fun, but in a rage. What was his message to me? Hmm. He wasn’t able...Read More

Backyard Art Fairs & Tie Dye Parties

Posted on April 23, 2018February 27, 2019 by Laura

Tie dye, anyone? When my kids were little, we had the neighbors over for tie dye parties. In the backyard, we dunked T-shirts, pillow cases, and socks into big buckets of dye. My husband Tim monitored the garden hose as we rinsed the colors out. The alley flowed with turquoise,...Read More

Alison Sherwood, Part 2: Memory Maker, Memory Finder, & Memory Keeper

Posted on April 19, 2018April 23, 2018 by Laura

As a mom of small children, Alison Sherwood says YES to Mess and Mayhem. Not only does she enjoy creating and capturing memories for friends, she makes art for, about, and with her kids. She doesn’t dictate the outcome but engages them in the process, even working alongside them. Their...Read More

Alison Sherwood, Part 1: Memory Maker, Memory Finder, & Memory Keeper

Posted on April 16, 2018April 23, 2018 by Laura

Need inspiration? Need ideas for a party or craft? Look no further. This woman is overflowing with them! Non-stop. Alison Sherwood is a journalist turned stay-at-home-mom to three kids (Corban, 6, Mara, 4, and Haddon, 3). For nine years, she was a writer, videographer, blogger, and digital jack-of-all-trades for the...Read More

Process vs. Product: the Sizzle or the Steak?

Posted on April 12, 2018April 23, 2018 by Laura

We all love shortcuts. From dishwashers to washing machines, from cars to planes, from texting to email, from Google to apps for anything you can imagine, the modern world is all about convenience and finding the easiest and fastest way to do something. But that’s not how creativity usually works....Read More

Say YES to MESS & Mayhem – the Joy is in the Journey – right?

Posted on April 9, 2018April 23, 2018 by Laura

Is the joy really in the journey? [caption id="attachment_408" align="aligncenter" width="759"] Photo credit: cogdogblog on VisualHunt / CC BY[/caption] What price are you willing to pay for letting creativity flow? In other words, what messes are you willing to put up with? This is an ode to my mother. I...Read More

Author Liz Tolsma: Story Worlds steeped in WWII history

Posted on April 5, 2018April 23, 2018 by Laura

Unlike my friend Cathy, I cannot read and cook at the same time without drastic consequences. Spaghetti boiling over. Overcooked Chicken Divan. Burned biscuits. Have you ever been so engrossed in a novel that you forgot you were reading? Or didn’t hear the oven timer? And your smoke alarm went...Read More

We Need Fairy Tale Dragons

Posted on March 29, 2018April 23, 2018 by Laura

We need Fairy Tale Dragons. [caption id="attachment_365" align="aligncenter" width="650"] CC BY-SA 3.0[/caption] We need the bad guys, the villains. Jack’s Giant. Cinderella’s and Snow White’s evil step-mothers. The Troll who bullied the Three Billy Goats Gruff. The witch in Hansel and Gretel. The Big Bad Wolf. Not to mention Captain...Read More

Why was Einstein so brilliant?

Posted on March 26, 2018April 23, 2018 by Laura

What’s the first thing that comes to mind when you think of Albert Einstein? The theory of relativity? The atomic bomb? An image of a wild-haired genius? How about fairy tales? Seriously. He was a huge fan. Here’s what he said . . . ************************** "If you want your children...Read More

The Ruby Slippers

Posted on March 22, 2018April 23, 2018 by Laura

“Today the ruby slippers went on auction,” I wrote to my college-aged daughter in November, 2011. “They’re expected to be sold for 2 or 3 million dollars!” [caption id="attachment_334" align="aligncenter" width="720"] Photo credit: twm1340 on Visualhunt / CC BY-SA[/caption] Audrey and I share a love of old movies, including The...Read More

In the schoolyard: R.I.P. Here lies imagination

Posted on March 19, 2018April 23, 2018 by Laura

“My legs have hiccups.” That’s how my daughter described muscle twitches at age three. “There a melted rainbow on that truck.” That’s her four-year-old description of a colorful array of fuzzy, blended images. “It’s the same sky over Milwaukee as in Michigan. God just spreads it over us all like...Read More

Creativity: Popcorn Popper vs. Slow Cooker?

Posted on March 15, 2018April 23, 2018 by Laura

Ever been on a committee that had to come up with ideas for the next best thing? It could be great fun, depending on what has to be made: --a Super Bowl commercial --a plot twist for a TV show --a name for a new doodad --a catchy slogan or...Read More

Creativity is not just for Artists

Posted on March 12, 2018April 23, 2018 by Laura

Brad and Joyce, my in-laws, would never call themselves artists, but they are two of the most creative people I know. Give Joyce the high school play title along with yards of fabric and accessories, and she’ll whip out a bevy of fantastic stage-ready costumes that will leave...Read More