Have you seen how many shapes Lego comes in these days? When I was a young whippersnapper … I just love it when my stream of consciousness goes into character. I’d have been an actress if I could actually act. Where was I? Oh yeah. When I was a kid, Lego came in about a dozen different shapes and sizes, and I had to figure out what to do with it myself. Which was usually a boring old tower. None of these strange shapes with complex patterns existed.

But you know what? It has become a brilliant teaching tool. A kid who can follow the instructions on a Lego set will have no problems building his or her Ikea furniture! Or wouldn’t if the instructions were as easy to follow as a Lego set. But hey, it’s a start! Following instructions is a skill. And one that you have to be in the mindset to do. When I say this, I think back to so many people (mostly men: sorry, men) who refused to follow directions or even GET them whilst driving somewhere. You know the type. You may even BE the type. If you are, don’t deny it.

Lego though. Lego teaches that if you follow the instructions carefully, you’ll be successful. Is it some kind of mind control thing, teaching our kids that they’d better follow the rules or else? (Hey, good conspiracy theory, eh?) That would be an interesting theory if it weren’t for the The Lego Movie, in which they encouraged kids to do whatever they wanted with their Lego sets. (Didn’t they? I didn’t see it, but that’s what I heard.) Which, let’s face it, is that much more difficult when you’ve got crazy shapes to deal with.

In the end it’s all about imagination though. And the power of creating. Whether you’re creating a sweater from a pattern, an embroidered picture, or a toy; a blog post, a colouring project, a painting, a poem, a novel … it’s all about the escapism that comes from concentration and the satisfaction of being able to sit back and say “I created something where before there was nothing.” It’s liberating. It’s self-affirming. And I believe it’s what gets us through life with a degree of the sense of accomplishment. It gives us hope.

Lego gives us hope!

Thank you, Lego.

This (unintentionally) inspirational post is brought to you by Stream of Consciousness Saturday. Click the link to find all the other participating blogs in the comment section, and join in yourself. Be inspired! https://lindaghill.com/2018/03/23/the-friday-reminder-and-prompt-for-socs-march-24-18/