Fun Friday – A writer’s imagination gone wild



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I have always told my boys that they can talk to me about anything. However, when my fourteen-year-old son asked me to explain climax, I nearly choked on the salad I was eating. And it isn’t easy to choke on spinach leaf lettuce.

It happened after dinner the other night; my son was sitting next to me on the couch, tweeting someone on his phone. I was doing my usual, snacking with the laptop by my side. That was when he asked the question…

“Ma, how to you explain climax to someone who doesn’t know what it is?”

My response was quick, “WHAT?! You want to talk about that now?”

“Yes,” he said calmly.

“Do you really want to talk about the birds and the bees NOW?”

That’s when he lost control with laughter. “I’m talking about the climax of a story. You know, you’re a writer.”

I hit him with a couch pillow and ended that conversation. That episode is what can happen when you release your imagination…all kinds of thoughts spill out. That was the second episode of an imagination gone wild that day. My first experience occurred earlier that day.

I was on the treadmill at the fitness center when my imagination took over. A fellow member said something to me while I was wearing my ear buds and watching the TV monitor. I smiled and gave a response, but I didn’t really know what he said.

After the workout, I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror. What I saw led me to imagine that my friend on the treadmill may have said (with a smile)…

“Boy, you look a mess today.”

I smiled back and said, “thanks, you too. Have a nice day.”

As I let my imagination go where it will, I am reminded to also use better listening skills.

Have you ever let your imagination run wild? What was the outcome?