Forty-four years ago, John Lennon and Yoko Ono began co-producing, along with Phil Spector, one of the greatest songs utilized in the global effort for world peace. Imagine was recorded in May, and later released in October, and the world has never been the same since. The message is so simple, and so true. Imagine a world where everybody lives as one with no fighting, hunger, or greed. “Imagine all the people, living life in peace.” Over the past 44 years this song has become a lyrical symbol of the movement for world peace.
Without imagining a world free of terror, war, hunger, poverty, etc. we wouldn’t have an end goal to work towards. It seems imagination is an important first step in working towards world peace, so let’s get a deeper understanding in this week’s Weekend Word.
im·ag·i·na·tion
iˌmajəˈnāSH(ə)n/
noun
- the faculty or action of forming new ideas, or images or concepts of external objects not present to the senses.
- the ability of the mind to be creative or resourceful.
- the part of the mind that imagines things.
It’s because of our ability to imagine, that we are able to create goals that take us to new heights as individuals, organizations, and society as a whole. Without being able to form new ideas about the way things ought to be, we would have no goals to shoot for.
We were able to send a man to the moon, invent tablets and watches that keep us more connected in ways we never thought we could… all because someone imagined it was possible. While it takes hard work to achieve our goals, it’s clear that imagination is the important first step.
When our children were first living on the streets, without food or shelter and subjected to whatever terrors might come their way, they didn’t just accept this as fact. As if this was their lot in life and it would never get better. They used their imagination to dream of a better life; one where they were able to be self-sufficient and had basic necessities such as food, clothing and shelter. Their imagination has given them a goal to shoot for, and thanks to the donors and everyone who works at our schools, they are given a resource to work towards that goal.
Every day, the children are hard at work getting an education so that one day they will have a better, more peaceful, life. World peace won’t come over night. But, it is our firm belief that if we can eliminate some of the end goals that people fight for, and educate future generations one child at a time, we can make the world a more peaceful place.
There are many ways that you can contribute to world peace. You can meditate, pray and focus on world peace, discuss world peace issues with others, or contribute your time and resources to projects that support world peace. If you’d like to do the latter of these, please consider supporting our students at Hope for Hearts. Any amount large or small helps in our efforts to improve children’s lives in Uganda, so that they won’t have to fight for basic necessities. You can make a donation in any amount, or sponsor a child and helping their dreams come true at hope4hearts.org.
Wishing you peace,
Cristen
