Thinker, Tinker, Try
His nose was long…..hair even longer. When he sniffed and snooped you heard his inhales from start to finish. Fear grabbed me by the index finger and sneered, Come with me little girl.
“I can smell them! Where are they?” purred the child catcher in Chitty-Chitty Bang Bang.
The movie appeared on television once per year—back when there were only three channels to choose from. This time marker was a much anticipated event, along with other yearly delights like The Wizard of Oz and Charlie Brown’s toast and popcorn Thanksgiving feast.
On demand—ha! Who dreamed that up? A tinkerer?
Can you believe it took me forty odd years to consciously recognize the symbolism behind the fearsome black hat? He rang a bell, lured with candy, and snatched children from cobbled streets. The wrongful and misguided shrew caged the vulnerable in a wagon before locking them in a grotto beneath the castle, stealing their joy and potential.
What he didn’t anticipate was the brave hearts beating beneath vulnerability.
In stark contrast, Dick Van Dyke’s character Caractacus Potts, instilled hope that there was nothing to fear. An adult who futzed and putzed his days away fiddled with a car and made it fly. Calling on his strong creative muscle, Caractacus concocted a plan to rescue the jailed children by building Trojan, adult-sized music boxes. His out of the box thinking saved the day and kindled spirits.
As a young adult, I watched another underappreciated inventor on the big screen.
Based on the true story of Thomas Alden, Fly Away Home takes us on a journey in an ultralight aircraft invented by the movie’s protagonist. We watch orphaned goose eggs hatch in a dresser drawer and the goslings imprint on a thirteen year old girl. With her talented father’s guidance, she teaches the flock to migrate.
Can you imagine the exhilaration in such an experience?
Putting words to page unearths the joy and potential hidden in my depths.
What creative pursuits set your joy and potential free?