A former associate of mine, who is currently studying education for her college degree, informed me of a program required for her major, where she interacted with preschoolers. The preschoolers were told to color a tree. She was instructed by the teacher to give paper and crayons to one of the students in the preschool classroom. Thinking this would be a good learning experience for the child, she proceeded to give the preschooler multiple crayons to color with until the teacher of the class stopped her. The teacher said to only offer the child green and brown colored crayons. Naturally, she asked why. She was told trees have brown stumps and green leaves, so those are the only two colors the child would need. Being the patient person she is, she had to grit her teeth and do as required.
The teacher’s deduction for a simple picture such as a tree couldn’t be further from the truth. Depending on the season, a tree’s color varies. It also depends on the type of tree, such as how cherry blossoms are pink. This is just one issue to an expanding problem in our generation. Creativity is being snuffed from our society.
Colleges have even started to decrease the functionality of departments centered around the arts. With the majority thought being gravitated towards careers that earn more income for the individual, majors focused on expressing original thought appear to be the less popular choice. A society focused more on their own profits rather than advancing morally and intellectually as a whole, is doomed to fail.
Innovative thinking starts with original thought. Whether you’re a Christian, atheist, or another religious affiliation, our existence in itself is a by-product of an original idea. Something as complex as our bodies and the earth started with thought. Buildings, trade ports, ships, water irrigation, food production and etc. could not exist today without different individuals’ original idea. Thus, reality starts with thought. The absence of creativity develops a drone-like society which follows the ones in power without ever questioning why he or she is following their lead to begin with.
Unfortunately, this is the path we are already going down today. With so many people following other YouTubers, stock markets, business owners, and entrepreneurs just to get rich quick, few actually give time to come up with their own successful original idea. This idea of getting rich quick only to benefit one’s self is also inadvertently leading us down a dangerous path of selfishness. Breaking free from the follower mentality and questioning thought itself is the first step in the right direction we all can take as individuals.
Reginald andah 